Kandi Burruss has a new girl group in town; their song is a Billboard hit

Upon first listen, the song’s mature vocal instincts sound driven by a group that’s no stranger to the radio. Instead, the voices behind the music are new artists — Psiryn (pronounced “siren”). The Atlanta trio, composed of Victoria McQueen (22 years old), Anaya Cheyenne (21) and Jada Denise (20), is the latest brainchild of girl group veteran Kandi Burruss.

Since the release of “Sober,” Psiryn has toured with Burruss for Xscape and SWV’s Queens of R&B Tour. They’ve also opened for Nick Cannon’s Wild ‘n Out Live Tour and performed for DTLR’s HBCU Welcome Back Tour.

With a debut single and a string of shows under their belt, Psiryn makes a strong case for leading a resurgence of Black girl groups in Atlanta and beyond.

Credit: Ben Gray

Credit: Ben Gray

“We’ve just been working, working, working,” McQueen said. “We’re super thankful, and we’re just excited for the future.”

Psiryn officially formed last spring at AGI Entertainment, an artist development company in Marietta. Each member initially pursued solo careers, however, after collaborating on a song for another artist (Brandin Jay), they decided they worked better as a unit.

The group posted a cappella covers online, which eventually caught the attention of Burruss and Nick Cannon — both of whom were looking for the next big girl group. And Psiryn answered the call.

The trio would later post more cover songs while being trained for artist development. One of their covers, Anita Baker’s “Sweet Love,” went viral last year and even got a nod from Baker herself.

The name for the trio is a twist on the sirens in Greek mythology, creatures who lured sailors with their voices. For Psiryn, their voices, growing friendship and diligent training are crucial to their development. They don’t want to rush their success. Slow and steady wins the race.

It also helps that the members already knew each other before becoming a group.

“The pace that we’re going now (is nice),” Cheyenne said. “We’re pretty good with bouncing off of each other. We’re good with our schedules and helping each other wake up, helping each other be on time. We give each other room to just be ourselves. That’s something we definitely keep in the center. We stay focused, we communicate with each other and we give each other room to bring to the table what we all bring.”

Breaking new ground

Credit: Handout

Credit: Handout

Atlanta has long history of Black girl groups — from TLC and Xscape to Cherish and the OMG Girlz. But within the past decade, there’s been a noticeable drought of them in Atlanta and elsewhere in the country.

Psiryn is ready to fill the void. The group worked in artist development for nearly two years before releasing any music.

“We put pressure on ourselves, definitely, because we aren’t just doing this just to do it,” McQueen said. “We’re doing it because we have a passion for music. We have a passion for singing, and we want to make a name for ourselves and bring back R&B Black girl groups. Our team is also very diligent, hardworking. They want to get us out there, so I would say we feel pressure, but I think it’s a good pressure. Because at the end of the day, we all know that we’re in this for a reason.”

“Sober” is released on Burruss’ label Kandi Koated Entertainment. Burruss also has a writing and production credit on the song, along with Brandin Jay, Jonathan Henry, Liby Vongmanee, Stephen Parks and Natalie Orfilia.

Burruss said she felt the song was strong enough to be Psiryn’s official introduction, especially considering it had a relatable theme and showcased the group’s voices well. The group’s impressive vocal range is what initially attracted Burruss. She pushed for the repetition of the word “sober” in the hook to make it more catchy.

Credit: Robb Cohen for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Credit: Robb Cohen for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“As a songwriter, I might listen to things differently than everybody else. So for me, the hook was strong,” Burruss said. “Conceptually, a lot of people can relate to it, because in that age group, you know, people may just be starting to drink and they don’t want to hear nobody with the drama. The tempo of the record is also not too slow, but it’s riding. It just makes you feel good.”

Denise said making the song was a fun as it sounds: “It’s very easy to sing. As three vocalists who are some challenging singers, we had to spice it up and make it like more like us so that people know we can still sing, yeah, but we could also have fun with it.”

Psiryn is working on a music video for “Sober,” and they recently submitted the song for Grammy consideration. The group plans on working on new music, booking more shows, and the women plan on continuing to develop their craft.

After all, there are high expectations. Burruss wants the group to be in the same conversations as the best girl groups of all time.

“I just want people to know, when you really believe in an artist, sometimes it’s not overnight that these things happen, especially with new artists, you know,” she said. “You really have to invest in them and build it from the ground up. … It’s wonderful when you do things for yourself, but when you help other people get to a place and you can see what they’re doing, it feels good.”