Manchester-based singer-songwriter Aaliyah Esprit’s My Ex-Stacy pulls drum and bass into a brighter, rave-charged space while keeping her R&B instincts close. Produced by Channell and reworked by Bypassmusic, the track sits on euphoric synths, late-night movement and a playful double meaning. Here, Aaliyah talks melody-first writing, liquid D&B, production, writing camps and finding her way back into R&B.

My Ex-Stacy feels like it has one foot in drum and bass and the other somewhere in the middle of a 3am rave. Was there a moment when you realised the track needed to lean fully into that energy rather than stay in a more traditional D&B lane?

Honestly, I knew from the first time Channell sent me the beat. I was just taken to that era straight away. I think the whole song was written and recorded in a few hours. The synths just gave that nostalgic feeling and I just thought, I want to make something you would blast on a soundsystem with your friends and go wild to. Especially the rap section, it was giving early noughties Ms Dynamite vibes. We had so much fun making this.

The title works on a couple of different levels. Did the concept start with the title itself, or did you arrive at My Ex-Stacy once you'd already started writing about those themes of escapism and chasing highs?

I was inspired by Britney Spears, If U Seek Amy (f**k me). I thought she was so clever having this song blasted around and no one realised the double meaning, and that's when the idea of My Ex-Stacy came about. We decided to create a whole character around the concept, and there's some insane VFX in the music video. Now that everything's being released, it's brilliant the amount of people messaging me realising the song is not actually about an ex called Stacy.

There's a lot going on in the track, euphoric synths, big drops and plenty of movement, but it never feels overcrowded. When you're writing, are you someone who tends to strip ideas away or keep adding until something clicks?

For me personally, I write the topline melody first and go from there. I'll start with different lyrics and see what fits. I'll hum the melody, slipping in different lyrics, and try to find that pocket that works.

You've spent a lot of time around drum and bass over the last few years, but your background comes from a different musical world. Are there things you still hear in D&B that surprise you as a songwriter?

Liquid D&B is where it's at for me, and there's so many talented singers making incredibly soulful, moving music over D&B and I love that. It reminds me of the early days at Outlook Festival in Croatia on the beach.

When you're writing vocals, do they usually arrive from a melody first, a lyric first, or does it change every time?

Melody first for me every time. I need to know where I'm going musically, then the topic, then the words follow.

You mentioned spending time at writing camps in Bali and Italy. Was there a particular lesson or creative habit from those experiences that stuck with you once you got back home?

Probably the realisation that I had a real talent not just for writing for myself or within my genres, but also for working completely outside my normal comfort zone. I wrote for rock artists, pop, indie and country, a complete variation, and I absolutely loved it and contributed to some amazing music.

As someone who's now developing your production skills as well, has learning what happens behind the desk changed the way you listen to music when you're out at a festival or in a club?

I'm not sure I'm at that level yet. I'm still definitely beginner level there, but I am enjoying making music and having more of a say in the production of tracks. I've also been working directly with musicians to curate my own samples as a Splice alternative, and it's been working really well. The majority of this R&B project will be co-produced by me.

A lot of artists have a track in their catalogue that never seems to leave them alone. Is there one song people still bring up every time they meet you?

Energy, for sure. A lot of people went on a run of buying that track on Apple Music back in the day, and you know when you buy a track on Apple Music instead of streaming it, it's the first thing to play in the car when you get in. I get that so much.

You've got new R&B material on the horizon as well as this current run of drum and bass releases. Do you find yourself consciously switching between those worlds, or do they feel much closer together than people assume?

Even with D&B, I always gave soulful R&B vocals over liquid D&B beats. But to be fair, rather than truly switching between those two worlds, I've focused heavily on D&B over the past eight years as that's where life took me, and I'm excited to put that same kind of energy back into R&B. It's been fun finding my feet back in that world.

You're stranded on a desert island with one turntable, a generator and one record. What's it going to be?

At the moment, it's Isaiah Falls, Have My Babies. I'm obsessed with Isaiah Falls at the moment, and Lekan, but you won't let me pick two.

There's a clear thread running through the conversation. From discovering drum and bass through The North Quarter to writing across rock, pop, indie and country, Aaliyah's approach has remained remarkably consistent: follow the melody first and trust your instincts. That mindset runs through My Ex-Stacy, a track built for loud systems, late nights and losing yourself in the moment, and through the R&B material waiting in the wings. For Aaliyah, the genre might change, but it all starts in the same place: chasing the idea that feels exciting and seeing where it leads.