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The 11 best FKA twigs songs
Why have a top 10 when you can have one more? Ahead of her 'Eusexua' UK tour, we rank the top 11 songs by FKA twigs
Across every generation there are artists who are so singular, forward-thinking and inimitable, you wonder how music survived so long without them. Artists who aren’t afraid to push boundaries and blur genres, artists who remain steadfast in the authentic counterculture they emerged from. Björk, Bowie, Skin, Sonique – and now, singer-songwriter-dancer-producer-extraterrestrial FKA twigs.
‘Avant-garde’ feels like a flat description for all that FKA twigs – AKA Tahliah Barnett – has accomplished in her decade in the public eye. Since her Mercury Prize–nominated debut EP, LP1 (2014), under her previous moniker “twigs”, the artist has shown a breadth of creativity in sound, lyrical themes, and performance styles. Blending genres of hyperpop, alternative R&B, techno, indie electronica, trip hop and more, FKA twigs has come to be known as an artist where any genre goes, while her high-concept visuals are a celebration of Black queer culture, dance, and unconventional femininity.
In the autumn of 2024, FKA twigs announced and promoted her then forthcoming album, EUSEXUA, with a series of international raves to celebrate the shift from the slower BPMs on her preceding mixtape, CAPRISONGS, to high-intensity hyperpop and techno. The title of the album is a word coined by twigs herself – as with every guard of the “avant”, language is simply another barrier to break – ‘eusexua’ is characterised as either the “moment before…a really good idea of pure clarity” (The Run-Through with Vogue), the “moment of nothingness just before a big surge of inspiration or creativity or passion”, or even the “moment before an orgasm”. (The Standard) Whatever ‘eusexua’ means to you, the project is has already become a defining moment for 2025 music, and will be the through-line of FKA twigs’ upcoming UK tour. Ahead of her first show this month, we take on the mammoth task of ranking her top 11 songs.
11. ‘fallen alien’
(MAGDALENE, 2019)
From her 2019 sophomore album, MAGDALENE – a project inspired by her breakup with actor Robert Pattinson, which explores the tenderness, vulnerability and rawness of heartbreak – ‘fallen alien’ comes in at the 11th spot on our list. Produced by Nicolas Jaar and FKA twigs herself, ‘fallen alien’ combines grungey electronic distortion with an ethereal choral background vocal, while twigs lyrically explores “a medieval march through the destruction of a relationship”. (Spotify Storylines) It’s the defiant moment of realising that the relationship is not working, and choosing to move away from it. FKA twigs even added that many of the original demo vocals for the track remained on the final cut, to keep the raw emotion in the delivery.
10. ‘Video Girl’
(LP1, 2014)
From her debut album, the sultry futuristic alternative R&B track ‘Video Girl’ comes in at No.10. As one of the lead singles, ‘Video Girl’ set tumblr ablaze with its striking Kahlil Joseph-directed accompanying visuals which feature a Travis Scott cameo with bloodied grills, and an emotional twigs watching her lover be executed on death row. The lyrics explore the artist’s desire to be known for more than her dancer past, having been a backup dancer for acts such as Kylie Minogue, Wretch 32 and Jessie J. LP 1 was a true introduction to the world as a fully fledged, individual artist, and ‘Video Girl’, with its trip hop leaning R&B and challenging lyrics, is the apt song to introduce our top 10.
9. ‘honda (feat. Pa Salieu)’
(CAPRISONGS, 2022)
This list’s first entry from FKA twigs’ 2022 mixtape CAPRISONGS and the first entry where we experience twigs the rapper, ‘honda’ comes in at ninth place. Featuring Gambian British rapper and a vanguard in his own right, Pa Salieu, ‘honda’ is an Afrobeats-inspired alt R&B track that is equal parts sexy and playful. Revisiting the choral elements from MAGDALENE, ‘honda’ begins with the operatic chants of what sounds like a chamber choir, before launching into the juxtaposing but familiar sounds of Afrobeats drums, all with twigs and Salieu seamlessly rhyming over the track. Their vocals are in congruence and in conversation, making ‘honda’ a flirty yet futuristic experience – something only the pair of them could do.
8. ‘Papi Pacify’
(EP2, 2013)
Another Tumblr-defining track, 2013’s ‘Papi Pacify’ is a bold offering from the early days of twigs’ career, setting her apart from her peers. Produced by FKA twigs and Venezuelan experimental electronic artist Arca, ‘Papi Pacify’ is an early look into how vulnerable and honest twigs is willing to be while speaking on topics of romance and yearning, yet balance a nuanced exploration of female sexuality. The lyrics beg the love interest to “pacify…clarify” while acknowledging that “it hurts” – ‘it’ being the longing for love from this love interest. While the music video, directed by twigs and Tom Beard, leans into visual depictions of BDSM dynamics, with a glitter-covered FKA twigs being “pacified” by her lover.
7. ‘In Time’
(M3LL155X, 2015)
On this Bjork-esque futuristic R&B track, FKA twigs dives into the difficult realm of relationships once more, exploring the “wanting and aching for [your partner] to be the person you need them to be to make yourself feel better”. (Complex, 2015) While Tumblr’s popularity was dying down, the community twigs had built was fired up and galvanised by the release of M3LL155X, an EP that picked up where EP2 left off, pushing her alternative R&B sound even further. The heavy percussion and competing textures on ‘In Time’ serves as progenitors for tracks on MAGDALENE and EUSEXUA, whilst still being simultaneously of the time and current-sounding. It’s a track of many facets; slow yet frantic, deeply sybaritic yet exposed, and bold yet quiet.
6. ‘mirrored heart’
(MAGDALENE, 2019)
From the seminal MAGDALENE, our sixth spot goes to ‘mirrored heart’ – a ballad where FKA twigs discusses past relationships and questions what a partnership should look like. Produced Koreless and FKA twigs herself, ‘mirrored heart’ explores reflection across different avenues: self reflection and how partners can reflect “who you aspire to be and…can mirror.” It’s an extraterrestrial ballad, with grungey guitar riffs, stern vocals and a sweeping crescendo – a comfortable track in our top 10.
5. ‘Drums of Death’
(EUSEXUA, 2025)
It may be superfluous or hyperbolic to call the EUSEXUA era a cultural reset, but FKA twigs’ return to releasing solo music and visuals after a three-year hiatus was met with such frenzy, it truly felt so. EUSEXUA is from the twigs dictionary, “Eusexua is for the girls who find their true selves under a hard metal silver stiletto on the damp rave floor”(Pitchfork, 2025), among many other definitions. But it’s second single ‘Drums of Death’, with its slick choreography and distorted bassline, that stands out on the europhic club album. It’s “eusexua” personified, forward-thinking dance music laced with sensuality, unbridled creativity, elements of technology, and “the feeling of ‘I’m that bitch'” (Pitchfork, 2025).
4. ‘meta angel’
(CAPRISONGS, 2022)
An exploration of rebirth, hope and overcoming past trauma, ‘meta angel’ takes our fourth spot. Featuring production from twigs herself, ‘meta angel’ takes its title from lyrics of longing for a guiding force that can show her the right path, all set against a trap-inspired alt-R&B track. The song begins with a revelation of her astrological birth chart “Saggi’ moon / Pisce’ ven / mm, Capri’ Sun” – Sagittarius moon sign, Pisces venus sign, Capricorn sun sign. Perhaps that’s an insight to her ethereal creativity and unabashed vulnerability? Whatever the source, we’re grateful ‘meta angel’, the contemporary prayer for the avant-garde.
3. ‘jealousy (Feat. Rema)’
(CAPRISONGS, 2022)
From avant-pop to alternative R&B to arthouse ballads, FKA twigs’ discography has pushed sonic boundaries and ran the genre gamut. But it’s her sultry Afrobeats duet with global superstar Rema that truly shows how successfully versatile she can be. Our final trip to CAPRISONGS, our third spot goes to ‘jealousy’, which features production from P2J, Fred again.., and El Guincho. While many may think it a more mainstream-leaning sound for twigs, ‘jealousy’ is still a demonstration of her feminine and sultry storytelling, paired with Rema’s breezy vocal performance, for the perfect twigs party soundtrack.
2. ‘Two Weeks’
(LP1, 2014)
Produced by Emile Haynie and Arca, ‘Two Weeks’ is the calling card of FKA twigs, and a song she’d come to be known for. A lover of the surreal, strange and wonderful, ‘Two Weeks’ represents how “weird things can be sexy” (The Guardian, 2014) for twigs, vulnerably yet boldly wooing the romantic subject of the song away from a sexless relationship. It’s hard to make the line “I can f*ck you better than her” come across earnestly, or in a way where we understand where the voice is coming from. But that’s FKA twigs’ power – being unapologetic and truthful about where she writes from. The career-defining music video features twigs milking herself, adorning her nude body in gold paint, and blending different styles of dance – a true feat of her artistry and an indication of what was to come.
1. ‘cellophane’
(MAGDALENE, 2019)
The lead single from the seminal MAGDALENE, there was only one song that could be the top of this list. ‘cellophane’ is a moving ballad that places melancholic piano and strings over a sparse, avant-garde partially beat-boxed track. The textured synths add to twigs’ atmospheric vocal performance, where she laments on feelings of heartbreak and isolation. The multidisciplinary artist planned the visual narrative whilst creating the song, spending one year learning the art of pole dancing in preparation for the video. ‘cellophane’ combines all of FKA twigs’ strengths: visual storytelling, a celebration of the female form in all its iterations, the balance of sensuality and vulnerability, and a delicate yet strong vocal performance.
