Christelle Bofale is an Austin-based songwriter. The first American born in her family, Bofale’s earliest musical memory is getting her first keyboard from the age of 4. From then onward, Bofale began to connect to the sounds of her culture, being drawn into the energy and groovy, rhythmic patterns imbued in soukous, a rumba-inspired genre from the Congo.

Currently, Bofale is rediscovering herself as a 22-year-old living in Austin. For Bofale, it’s time to reclaim her roots and make space for those who still find themselves on fringes of rock music. Her sound fuses hints of the Congo into various aspects of her music, bridging the musical influences of the diaspora with juxtaposed elements of indie rock, soul and jazz respectively. With influences like Joni Mitchell and Alex G, Bofale has found a sweet spot for her sound that lives between both harsh and gentle terrain, achieving a relaxing, yet rugged tonality. As she so eloquently puts it “it’s dreamy in the back, but hits hard in the front”.

After meeting Tyler Andere, A&R of Father/Daughter Records at a show last fall, Bofale has been hard at work on her forthcoming debut EP, which will be released later this Spring.



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