Ukrainian-born singer-songwriter SOFIIA has released her new single “Off My Mind” today, marking a return to making music after a six-month journey of self-reflection.
The track arrives as the first taste of her upcoming debut EP, due later in 2026. The single was written in London with producer Finn Matthews, with the pair improvising at the keys and arriving at the song’s full structure within ten minutes.
For SOFIIA, the release carries a deeper personal significance. In 2022, she lost her physical home in Kyiv following Russia's full-scale invasion, and with it her sense of stability. A period of internal questioning followed – “Who am I? Why do I make music? Do I even want to continue?” – and she found herself relying on external voices and other people’s visions of who she should be. The further she moved from what felt true to her, the less joy and meaning she found in the music, leaving the stage feeling confused and the studio without fulfilment.
The turning point came in November 2025, when SOFIIA travelled to Los Angeles for songwriting sessions. By coincidence, she was invited onstage at a jazz bar, which led to a series of performances at other venues across the city. Without planning it, she found herself performing the music that had first sparked her love as a child – covers of Aretha Franklin, Christina Aguilera, Whitney Houston and Alicia Keys.
That renewed energy carried back to London and into the writing of “Off My Mind”. While the lyrics speak to love and relationships, the track also carries a more direct message about self-love and choosing yourself first.
A former member of Ukrainian girl group VIA GRA, SOFIIA also won the youth edition of The Voice Ukraine in 2012 and represented her country at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in 2013, placing second with “We Are One”.
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