Fiona Amaka’s “Sometimes forever” treats the end of a relationship as a decision two people can accept without denying what they shared. Putting away shoes and folding a dressing gown bring the separation into the home, where ordinary objects remain after the promise has run out. “We gave it all we had” is not an excuse. It is as far as the speaker can go.
The couple agree to share their kitchenware, though the speaker already imagines them fighting over the same things. The practical details of splitting up carry traces of the life they built together. The admission that there is nothing left to give keeps the song from turning the breakup into a story of blame. They tried, and sometimes that does not mean staying.
Amaka draws on folk-rock, Americana and classic rock, a fitting frame for a song that returns to the limits of what love can promise. Each repetition of “Sometimes forever” brings the title closer to a plain statement than a defeat. The dressing gown goes away. The kitchenware gets divided.
For those who might not know you yet, how would you introduce yourself?
Hi, I’m Fiona Amaka. I write soulful, not particularly mainstream indie-rock songs about different aspects of the human experience. I’m also a singer.
If you had to bottle up your sound into just three words, which ones would you choose?
Relatable, honest, intense.
Which artists (not only music-related) or moments have left the biggest mark on your music?
From the pure writing perspective, I’d say the 19th century French novelist Colette had the earliest impact on how I wanted to write, how I want to describe emotions, states of mind and outcomes. I started reading her books when I was a teenager. In terms of musical influences, obviously there are very many! The most formative are probably Joan Armatrading, Stevie Nicks, Tracy Chapman,Bonnie Raitt, Smashing Pumpkins, Skunk Anansie. Having said that, my everyday listening is mainly break-through artists and emerging artists. So they’re inevitably going to leave a mark on my music too. Current faves include Francis of Delirium, Jesse Welles, Tabi Harlowe, Kingfishr, Leon Bridges, Joy Oladokun. I could go on and on!
When you hit play on your songs, what kind of feeling takes over?
It depends on the song! A couple of the songs in my catalogue are quite personal and close to the bone, so sometimes I’m just relieved they haven’t got me into trouble!
If you could team up with anyone in the world, no limits, who would be that dream collaborator?
If we’re extending that to dead or alive dream collaborators, it would have to be Prince. His phenomenal musicianship and refusal to be boxed into any fixed musical genre would make him a dream collaborator for me.
What are you working on now, and what are your plans for the future? Anything exciting you can tell us about?
Can you walk us through the story or emotion behind “Sometimes forever”?
We’re working on my next song at the moment, which I’m hoping can be released before the end of 2026. It’s a mainly acoustic tune. My listeners will hear parts of the song on my socials very soon. I’ll be playing a solo set at acoustic showcases on 14 and 29 October (see my Instagram page for details! ) and with the Fiona Amaka Band at West Norwood Feast’s Christmas Fayre at the end of the year.
In my live shows, I often introduce Sometimes forever as a song about happily surviving breakups. That’s because I don’t like taking too long to introduce a song before I start playing it. The other side to the song is the cost of believing that a relationship has everything it takes to make it for the long haul – and then the impact and sense of failure if that vision falls through. It’s only the benefit of time and the will to move forward that eventually enables a wry smile at the end of it all. But I guess that’s a bit of a mouthful for an onstage introduction…
