The OVO Sound singer reflects on the music that shaped her, the milestones her younger self dreamed of, finding freedom in new sounds and learning to appreciate the woman she is becoming.
For Naomi Sharon, music has never been something she had to discover. It was woven into the sounds of her childhood and the people around her.
Growing up in the Netherlands, she was surrounded by a family that lived and breathed music. Her father is a producer, her mother used to sing, and her uncle is a musician. With different genres playing around her from an early age, Sharon developed an open mind towards music long before she understood where it might take her.
“I grew up with a lot of different types of music. My parents were very much into world music, to be honest, from everywhere, literally,” she says.
“I already grew up with this open mind towards a lot of things. To me, it was just the fact that I could kind of draw inspiration from my parents’ inspiration.”
That early exposure became the foundation of a lifelong love affair with music – one that has since taken her from the Netherlands to international stages, two albums, several EPs and the history-making achievement of becoming the first female artist signed to OVO Sound.
But perhaps the clearest indication that performing was always in her blood came when she was just four.
Her cousin had won a talent show and was asked to perform her winning song, Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend, again. Sharon’s parents were watching from the audience when they realised their daughter was no longer beside them. She had made her way onto the stage herself.
“I climbed on the stage myself. I came up front, and I was doing my own performance,” she recalls.
There were no nerves and no hesitation.
“I was not shying away from performance, and it’s funny because that is kind of, to me, very clear with how I’m performing right now and how comfortable I am on stage. I’m never nervous. It feels like home for me.”
That fearless little girl appears to have known something that even the grown-up Sharon sometimes forgets.
Reflecting on becoming the first female artist signed to OVO Sound, she says the milestone is meaningful because it represents the life she once imagined for herself.
“I always wanted to be an artist, and I always wanted to do the performances that I’m doing,” she says.
That dream has since included touring with Doja Cat and performing in arenas in front of thousands of people – moments that Sharon says make her think about her younger self.
“Oftentimes I think about my younger version and I’m like, ‘Oh, if she would only know.’”
There is something beautiful about that reflection. The little girl who climbed onto a stage without a second thought could not have known the size of the stages that awaited her, but she seemed to know she belonged there.
Today, Sharon is giving herself permission to explore just how many versions of that artist can exist.
Her latest body of work, No Sleep In Paradise, represents a deliberate step beyond what she already knew. While Obsidian helped establish her sound, Sharon wanted to explore further, reaching towards pop and other genres that had previously sat outside her musical comfort zone.
“I think emotional in a way where I had to step out of my comfort zone and try a new thing, and that always feels a little bit uncomfortable in the beginning, but it was very rewarding at the end,” she says.
That willingness to experiment has become an important part of her evolution.
“When I was younger, I didn’t really see that vision yet because I was like, I think you have to do one thing. Whereas now I’m like, no, do whatever you want to do. But make it successful.”
These days, that could mean rock, classical rock, pop or R&B. For Sharon, the possibilities are becoming increasingly exciting because she no longer feels compelled to choose just one.
Her open-minded approach has also created a natural connection with Amapiano. Having encountered the sound early through the Netherlands’ African and South African communities, she was immediately drawn to its unusual combination of mood and movement.
“It’s (amapiano) kind of dark in a way (has a moodier or more dreamy/intoxicating quality to its sound), but also freeing,” she says. “It’s almost atmospheric, and I like that with my own music.”
It is a description that could easily apply to the world Sharon has created around herself. Music is only one part of that world. Fashion and beauty are equally intentional expressions of who she is.
Her fascination with fashion began when she was young and watching Fashion TV, long before she had an artist’s brand to build.
“I was already kind of creating this world for myself,” she says.
For Sharon, however, her aesthetic is not about following a formula. It is simply about feeling comfortable in her own skin.
“It’s more like that’s me, right? And I feel good about that. I feel good about wearing all black and this type of braids and these things. It’s just me.”
And she wants that visual identity to become as recognisable as the music itself.
“I want people to know that when they see those things, ‘Oh, that’s Naomi.’”
She points to artists such as Prince and Michael Jackson, whose visual identities became inseparable from their artistry.
“That’s why it’s so important to me to maintain that kind of world.”
Yet beneath the confidence is someone who understands that growth requires honesty.
Sharon is open about having insecurities and challenges of her own, refusing to suggest that confidence means having everything figured out.
“I do have my insecurities as well, you know. I’m a human being, and I have my challenges that I need to work on.”
For her, recognising those challenges is not a weakness. It is an opportunity.
“If you know about them, if you can be honest and if you own them, you can work on them.”
She believes everyone has something to work on, and that there is beauty in accepting that.
“We all have something to work on, and it should be a beautiful thing. You know, it should be a beautiful journey.”
Perhaps that is why her definition of success is changing, too.
Sharon is proud of No Sleep In Paradise, but she admits that she has a tendency to look towards whatever comes next almost as soon as something has arrived.
“I need to be more present and in the moment because I’m already on to the next thing,” she says.
It can be overwhelming when she wants listeners to discover every song and every “gem” on the album. But she is learning that sometimes the work needs space to breathe.
“You can’t accomplish that when you don’t appreciate where you are, right? And so that is kind of like a moment of success for me as well. If I want all those things, I should appreciate where I am right now.”
It is perhaps the most revealing part of Sharon’s journey. For someone who spent her childhood knowing she wanted to perform, and whose younger self seemed to have an almost uncanny belief in where she was headed, learning to pause and appreciate the destination is its own kind of growth.
And there is still plenty she wants to accomplish.
When she thinks about legacy, Sharon does not speak about staying safely within the boundaries of one genre or one identity. Instead, she wants to leave behind the freedom to explore.
“I hope to leave something that is showing that you can do whatever you want to do,” she says. “And that you can be successful in all those different pockets.”
Madonna is one of the artists she looks to for that kind of inspiration – someone who continually evolved, explored and refused to be boxed in.
“I think there’s beauty to that, and I would want to leave the same footprint.”
For all the milestones Sharon has already achieved, there is a refreshing sense that she is still figuring things out. She knows what she brings to the table, but remains grateful that people choose to listen.
“I know what I bring to the table, and I’m confident about that, but I’m still humble enough to understand how beautiful it is that people do with my songs. That’s not a given.”
And when listeners tell her that her music has changed their lives, the woman behind the music is still capable of being surprised.
“I’m like, wow, my song can change your life. That’s amazing.”
It is this combination of confidence, curiosity and gratitude that makes Sharon’s journey so compelling. She has the confidence of the four-year-old who climbed onto a stage without fear, the curiosity of an artist still willing to try something new, and the self-awareness to recognise that becoming who you are is not a destination.
Perhaps, after spending so much of her life dreaming about what comes next, Naomi Sharon is learning that there is also something powerful about staying right here.
