Aura Gold is the world that Grammy-nominated North Carolina singer-songwriter BeMyFiasco and acclaimed Finnish producer-artist Misha have been quietly building between time zones, tour stops, and leap-of-faith career moves. Crafted between North Carolina and Finland, their new EP folds 70s funk and disco, 90s R&B and hip-hop, Afrobeats, Amapiano, and modern soul into something that feels less like a nostalgia trip and more like a living, breathing reminder to trust your own light. For both artists, Aura Gold marks a turning point in their lives, one that saw BeMyFiasco walk away from a university job into full-time artistry, and Misha push his genre-blurring production even further, all in service of music rooted in radical honesty, courage, and love in its most complicated beauty.
In conversation with Earmilk, the duo opens up about the leap from casual collaboration to a fully-realized project, the Foreign Exchange–esque story of how a cross-continental email thread turned into a touring band, and the spiritual message at the center of their glittering title track. From the cinematic, disco-kissed “Aura Gold” to the Afrobeats and Amapiano glow of “Burning Fire” and the tender self-reclamation of “Back to Myself,” BeMyFiasco and Misha unpack how freedom, trust, and self-truth shaped every decision on the project, and why they hope this body of work sends listeners back into the world a little lighter, a little braver, and a lot more themselves.
Aura Gold sits at the intersection of freedom, trust, and self-truth. When you look at the project as a whole, what does “Aura Gold” mean to each of you personally?
Misha: To me, Aura Gold means shining your light into the world without apology. It’s about embracing who you are and trusting that authenticity is your greatest strength. I feel like that message is especially needed in these times. There’s so much noise and pressure to conform, but when people step into their truth and let their light shine, it becomes contagious. That’s the spirit behind this project.
BeMyFiasco: I agree. Aura Gold is about being unapologetically yourself. I was working a corporate job when we started this project and now I’m doing music full time. I had to take my own advice and not just pour into myself but believe I could do it. Aura Gold is the culmination of years of hard work and faith. I am a shining example of what happens if you really let God move. I asked him how good it could get and we got this project that’s allowed us to see the world and we’re just getting started.
You’ve been building together since 2023, but this EP feels especially locked-in. Was there a specific moment in the studio or online where you realized, “Oh, this is its own world now, not just a one-off collab”?
Misha: Working with BeMyFiasco felt natural from the very first collaboration we did together, “Your Body.” The chemistry was immediate and effortless. But I think the moment it really became clear that this was something bigger was when she flew all the way to Finland. That’s when I thought, “Okay, this is serious now.”
BeMyFiasco: Again agreed. When I got to Finland I was welcomed with open arms and we locked in the studio immediately. The first song we worked on was “Back to Myself.” I’d been listening to a lot of Moonchild and I wanted something in that vein. He brought in his fellow collaborators Cocabona on bass and Ville on guitar and it started flowing. Even the words just came to me with ease. After that, I knew we had something special.
After that, everything just flowed naturally — both in the studio and on stage. It stopped feeling like a remote collaboration and started to feel like a shared world we were building together.
This project was born between North Carolina and Finland, mostly online, in a way that echoes The Foreign Exchange’s origin story. How did the distance and time zones shape the pace, intimacy, or decision-making in your process?
Misha: Absolutely. The Foreign Exchange and Little Brother have been a huge influence on me in many ways, so there’s definitely a poetic element to the way this project came together across continents.
Working remotely actually slows things down in a good way. It gives you more time to sit with ideas and really think about what the music needs. Personally, I enjoy that aspect of remote collaboration. When we move, we move with precision.
Of course, the other side of that coin is the time zones. I’m not a big fan of late-night video calls with people who have just woken up with bright eyes and sharp minds, haha. And jet lag is no joke either, it usually takes me about two weeks to fully recover, lol.
BeMyFiasco: Being a huge FE fan and eventually joining the label, was a dream come true. The spirit of collaboration was always there. The distance and time zone differences made things challenging on the logistical end but the music was the easy part. Misha loves soul music and really knows where that pocket is, all I had to do was fill it in. We were PB&J after that.
Aura Gold pulls from 70s funk and disco, 90s R&B, Afrobeats, and modern soul without ever feeling like a pastiche. How did you keep the project feeling cohesive while touching so many eras and scenes?
Misha: Blending different eras has always been part of my musical DNA. I listen to music from a lot of different decades and places around the world, especially from the 70s and 80s, so that influence naturally finds its way into what I create. Also my collaborators add their own magic to the sound.
For me, the goal is always timelessness. If a song can feel connected to the past, the present, and the future at the same time, then it has a much longer life. That idea of timelessness became the foundation for the whole project sonically.
BeMyFiasco: I am soul music. I come from soul music and it’s in my blood. I don’t really think about genre as much as I think about feel. I was already listening to a lot of Heatwave & Gap Band, so I just weaved those influences in there.
For listeners pressing play for the first time, what details in the production or vocal arrangements should they lean in for—the little choices that really define the Aura Gold universe for you?
Misha: For me, it’s the way different musical cultures and eras come together while R&B and soul remain at the center. It’s like a fireworks display of influences, but the emotional core is always the same: music that speaks directly to your soul.
Arrangement-wise, we also love musical elements that you don’t hear as often in today’s mainstream music – things like bridges, key changes, and modulations. Those moments can create a real emotional lift in a song, and they help give the music a sense of journey.
BeMyFiasco: We made sure to bring back those classic R&B soul elements like vamps and bridges. Real singing and ad libbing. Stacked background vocals. All of it. We were just having fun.
The title track has this cinematic, disco‑kissed feel but the message is very stripped down: don’t be afraid to shine your light. Was there a point in your own careers where you struggled with dimming that light, and how did that experience end up in this song?
Misha: For a long time, I think I dimmed my own light by limiting myself to being seen mainly as a vocalist or rapper in Finland. Once I started producing my own music, something shifted. Suddenly there was no language barrier anymore, and I noticed how strongly people overseas connected with the music.
That opened up an entirely new world of possibilities for me, and since then there’s really been no turning back.
Sonically, this track is probably more pop-oriented than anything I’ve done before. In that sense, it also reflects my own journey of letting go of internal restrictions and not allowing external expectations to dictate how I express myself creatively.
BeMyFiasco: There are still times I have to remind myself of who I am and whose I am. You get squeezed into whatever genre people think you belong in and you spend forever trying to climb out of that box. At this point, I gave up on the box and just started making what I wanted. That’s where the real freedom is. That is the true spirit and essence of Aura Gold.
Both of you come in with serious resumes – GRAMMY nods, collaborations with Lalah Hathaway, Robert Glasper’s circle, The Foreign Exchange, and more. What did you have to unlearn or risk on Aura Gold that you might not have tried in your solo lanes?
Misha: For me, the biggest risk was pushing further into genre-blending: mixing elements of Afrobeats, disco, pop, and modern soul in ways I might not have explored as deeply in my solo work.
At the same time, I was very conscious of BeMyFiasco’s voice and artistic identity. I wanted to create a production that felt fresh for her, something that respected her strengths but also gave her a new space to explore vocally.
BeMyFiasco: It honestly felt like an extension of my solo work. I did however stretch out a bit on the title track as we were going for more of a pop sound. Again, I didn’t think too much. I learned to let the music take me.
You’re now taking this music into rooms from Finland to London and beyond. When people leave an Aura Gold show or finish the EP at home what’s the feeling or realization you hope really lingers with them?
Misha: Inner joy and self-confidence.
At the end of the day, I hope the music reminds people that it’s okay to be fully themselves. If someone walks away feeling a little lighter, a little more inspired, and a little more connected to their own light, then we’ve done our job.
BeMyFiasco: Freedom and authenticity. We are both truly ourselves. Through the music and on stage. I hope it encourages someone to follow their own dreams and take our songs as a soundtrack on that journey.
Connect with Misha: INSTAGRAM
Connect with BeMyFiasco: INSTAGRAM
