Zola Jesus is the stage name of North American singer-songwriter Nika Roza … Read Full Bio ↴Zola Jesus is the stage name of North American singer-songwriter Nika Roza Danilova (born 11 April 1989 in Phoenix, Arizona and raised in Merrill, Wisconsin, USA). Her music style combines electronic, industrial, classical, goth, and experimental rock influences.

Nika Roza Danilova was raised in Merrill, Wisconsin, on over 100 acres of forest. Danilova started singing early on, buying voice lesson tapes and opera sheet music at the age of 7; soon she began working with a vocal coach. It was not her parents' idea: "I begged them to do it. For some reason, I really wanted to sing opera even though I wasn't really exposed to it as a kid. I think my little baby toddler mind heard some opera song and then became fixated on how powerful it sounded," she later remembered. Danilova started performing opera when she was 10 years old, but experienced serious psychological difficulties. "I would too often lose my voice before performances due to anxiety, and was so hard on myself. I would beat myself up about any imperfections or flaws in my voice. I was such a perfectionist, and my voice was still so young so it couldn't do everything I wanted it to, and I resented myself for that. But since performing as Zola Jesus it's been getting easier," she later recalled.

In her teens, Danilova started to experiment in a more rock-orientated format. By naming her alter ego after Jesus Christ and the French writer Émile Zola she said she consciously wanted to alienate peers. "It worked perfectly – a lot of people wouldn't even say Zola Jesus because they thought it was sacrilegious", she said in an interview. "Using Jesus in my name isn't necessarily supposed to be a strong statement. I respect religion and I know people do need it, but it's a weird phenomenon in our world. It's so weird," she later commented. Inspired by favorites like Ian Curtis, Lydia Lunch, Diamanda Galás, Throbbing Gristle and Swans (but also bubblegum pop and classical aria), she started to record at home, using keyboards, drum machines and "anything else she had on hand". In 2008 she debuted with singles "Poor Sons" on Die Stasi and "Soeur Sewer" on Sacred Bones Records.

In 2009, while still studying at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Zola Jesus recorded (in her apartment) and released her debut full-length album The Spoils. The sound was in a certain way dependent on her surroundings. "I usually record in the winter because I am holed up. It's cold outside but warm inside with the heater and blankets. A lot of the songs are cold but in the coldness you find warmth. Winter has a lot to do with it.

Zola Jesus released an EP titled Stridulum in 2010, described as her most melodic work to date. Inspired by the Giulio Paradisi 1979 film of the same name, it marked "a huge leap forward in terms of fidelity and accessibility." After the release Zola Jesus performed at the SXSW festival, for her second time. Her second full-length album Stridulum II, which was an extension of the EP regarded as a debut in the UK, received 8/10 from NME which praised Danilova's classically trained voice as "the deadliest weapon in her arsenal" and called the album a "dark masterpiece."

Zola Jesus' third full-length Conatus was released in late September 2011 via Sacred Bones. The album's 11 tracks were produced by Brian Foote (aka Nudge; Jackie-O Motherfucker, Cloudland Canyon) and Danilova herself, including elements of cello, double bass, violin, and viola.

Zola Jesus has played with Former Ghosts and toured in support of Fever Ray and The xx. She also provides guest vocals on "New France" from their 2012 album Wonky.

It's Not Over
Zola Jesus Lyrics

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[Verse:]
You wanna forget all the nights and days out on the hunt
You wanna forget, but you can no longer push it off
Away! Now. Away! Now. And it hits you for the first time
Away! Now. Away! Now. And it won't become the last

[Chorus:]
It's not over tonight

It's not over tonight
It goes away now, away now
But it's not over tonight

[Verse 2:]
It follow you back and sing, as it locks you into place
And it won't be under last call cuz you know that now it's here
Away! Now. Away! Now. And it goes into your chest
Away! Now. Away! Now. And it can't just tell the rest

[Chorus:]
It's not over tonight
It's not over tonight

It goes away now, away now
But it's not over tonight

Overall Meaning

The song "It's Not Over" by Zola Jesus is about trying to escape from the past and a bad memory that keeps coming back. The lyrics in the first verse talk about wanting to forget about something that happened, but not being able to. The repetition of "Away! Now." emphasizes the singer's desire to flee the past. Yet, it is clear that the memory is still present and will continue to affect the singer. The chorus repeats the idea that "It's not over tonight," suggesting that the past is still present and cannot be escaped.

In the second verse, the memory is symbolized as something that follows the singer, locking them in place. This image represents the idea that the past trauma is preventing the singer from moving on from the situation. The repetition of "Away! Now." in the second verse is different because it suggests that the memory is invading the body of the singer, going into their chest and not just a mere thought.

Overall, the song shows the struggle of trying to forget about something traumatic and its lingering effects, even after putting in a lot of effort to try to leave it behind.

Line by Line Meaning

You wanna forget all the nights and days out on the hunt
You are trying to forget all the times you were searching for something.

You wanna forget, but you can no longer push it off
You have been trying to forget but you can't ignore it anymore.

Away! Now. Away! Now. And it hits you for the first time
You are trying to escape from it but it hits you hard for the first time.

Away! Now. Away! Now. And it won't become the last
Even though you are trying to run away from it, it won't be the last time you face it.

It's not over tonight
The situation is not over yet, it will continue to affect you tonight.

It goes away now, away now
The situation seems to be fading away but it might not last.

But it's not over tonight
Although it seems to be gone, it is still present and will continue to affect you tonight.

It follow you back and sing, as it locks you into place
It continues to follow you and affect you, keeping you in its grasp.

And it won't be under last call cuz you know that now it's here
It won't be forgotten as you know it is present and you can no longer ignore it.

Away! Now. Away! Now. And it goes into your chest
You try to escape again but it gets to you deeply, affecting you emotionally.

Away! Now. Away! Now. And it can't just tell the rest
Even though you try to hide it, it can't be concealed from others.