City College Music student Deja Zoufonoun who performs under the name “Deja Re” has emerged as a new voice of City College’s music department. In April, the music producer and singer gave her first public performance at the school’s “MusicNow!” concert, where she performed her ambient electronic tracks “Pyramids” and “Branches.”

Originally from the Bay Area, Zoufonoun’s history with music goes far back. Zoufonoun comes from a lineage of musicians, her grandfather immigrated from Iran to teach music in the United States. She said the ear for music was passed down to Zoufonoun’s father who developed singing skills and the ability to play the setar, a three-stringed instrument. From the young age of six, Zoufonoun wrote songs that she would sing and perform at elementary school talent shows.

It wasn’t until recent years that Zoufonoun changed course and put her music out there.

“I was really getting comfortable with the idea of going into corporate work,” Zefonoun said. “I felt like I was being pushed in that direction and I was accepting that.”

When Zoufonoun moved to the Santa Barbara area, she originally set out to join a band. She attended local musician meetups in Isla Vista but found no success; there was a surplus of vocalists and she didn’t play an instrument. Drawn to electronic music, she turned to music production, a path that naturally complemented her vocal talents.

“I realized that I could do it by myself, which is something that I hadn’t considered. I always thought I needed either a band or a producer.” Zoufonoun said on learning music production software.

After building a base of experience with DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations) like Logic Pro from the comfort of her home, Zoufonoun enrolled in City College’s Electronic Music and Sound Recording courses. In addition to this, she began employment as a music office administrator in the music department labs.

At the beginning of the year, Deja Re unveiled her first endeavor to the world with her debut song “Pyramids”. According to Zoufonoun, the atmospheric, metaphor-driven track began to blossom from the moment Zoufonoun discovered the Middle Eastern-tinged stock loop heard in the track. 

“I’ve kinda wanted to bring in some traditional Persian music aspects into my music, and it’s definitely going to be part of my music in the future,” Zoufonoun said. “I was excited when I found that (Middle Eastern loop) and then I kind of built off of that.”

While Deja Re is still finding her sound, she would label it “under the umbrella of electronica”. She cites Imogen Heap, Grimes, and Radiohead as artists who have inspired the direction of her music. 

“I think in the future what I hope to go towards is more experimental, like overall soundscape-focused music,” Zoufonoun said. “Drawing a lot from ambient music, hyperpop, I mean I hope to make stuff that is more boundary pushing.”

Zoufonoun’s next single, “Branches,” was originally slated for a March release and was even performed at “MusicNow!” But she felt the song wasn’t quite ready to bloom. 

“I don’t have a date for [“Branches”] yet, but it’s actually in the final stages and I’m gonna release that in June,” she said

Deja Re plans to follow up her series of singles with the release of her debut full-length album.