Hackney-based singer/songwriter Pierre Da Silva gives himself over to desire and temptation on “Taboo,” a smoldering seduction that finds freedom in secrecy and the thrill of giving in.

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Stream: “Taboo” – Pierre Da Silva

Desire lives in the in-between – in the moments we keep to ourselves, the glances we don’t explain, the connections that feel too electric to name out loud.

Pierre Da Silva’s “Taboo” leans all the way into that tension, turning secrecy into seduction and restraint into release.

It’s a song that pulses with quiet urgency and undeniable pull, a brooding, propulsive slow-burn that wraps itself around you and doesn’t let go. From its very first breath, Da Silva’s breathtakingly nuanced vocal performance draws you in close – intimate, aching, and visceral – gliding over a dreamy, soul-stirring soundscape that feels as intoxicating as it is emotionally charged. This is music that doesn’t just linger; it lingers under your skin, shimmering with longing and heat in equal measure.

I didn’t mean to do this
It only took one kiss
To disarm me with your lips
Now I can’t resist uh huh
You know just what you’re doing
Got me playing into your tricks
I’ll be falling into your ditch
Laid out there for me
That’s a guarantee

Released March 26, “Taboo” finds the Hackney-based singer/songwriter stepping into a more playful, mischievous side of his artistry, expanding on the vulnerability-led songwriting that first put him on the map. Having built a reputation for emotionally open, reflective records, Da Silva continues to evolve here – blending pop, soul, and dance influences into a sound that feels both deeply personal and effortlessly fluid. His recent run of releases, including February’s “Dans Le A.M.,” signals an artist in motion, growing more confident and more uninhibited with each step, while staying rooted in the emotional honesty that defines his work – a balance he sums up simply: ‘Sometimes the music will be fun, sometimes it won’t.’

That sense of freedom is intentional.

“Most of my writing is often rooted in vulnerability, but ‘Taboo’ was written from such a playful place,” Da Silva tells Atwood Magazine. “It’s about leaning into the thrill of a guilty pleasure. Seeing someone or doing something you might want to keep private, and embracing the freedom and excitement in that.”

For Da Silva, the song isn’t weighed down by conflict – it thrives in that push and pull, finding beauty in the tension between what’s felt and what’s revealed.

You, you bring the trouble
I’m falling into
I know what I’m doing
but I’m not supposed to
I can’t stop it, I don’t want to
I don’t want to, I only want you

Let’s keep it a secret
Call it Taboo
You’re just trouble and I knew
I can’t stop it, I don’t want to
I don’t want to, I only want you

Written during a period of creative shift, “Taboo” captures an artist opening himself up in new ways. “I feel like I’m constantly growing and changing and expressing myself in new ways… this music is much freer and more honest than some of my previous releases,” he explains. “That’s mainly due to me just coming into my own as a person and finding more confidence in who I actually am. We’re definitely stripping the layers back.” That evolution is palpable throughout the track, where every note feels instinctual and unguarded, guided as much by emotion as by intention.

Sonically, this openness translates into a rich, immersive experience.

There’s a sensuality to the way the song unfolds – a subtle build, a lingering tension, a rhythm that feels both grounded and weightless. The bilingual interplay of English and French adds another layer of intimacy, softening the edges and deepening the allure, as if the song itself is slipping between worlds. It’s in that space that Da Silva thrives, balancing soulfulness and restraint with a magnetic, almost hypnotic pull.

One look and I’m yours
But could you be mine
There’s danger in your eyes
But I can’t look away
It’s 11:59 I’m asking you to stay
You’re happy to oblige
We both clearly want it that way
We both clearly want it that way

What makes “Taboo” so striking isn’t only its subject matter, but the way Da Silva carries it. His voice is the vessel that makes the song ache and smolder, moving through desire with a rare mix of delicacy and heat. There’s a hair-raising tenderness in his delivery – the kind that draws every confession closer to the skin – and an emotional fluency that makes even the song’s most playful moments feel rooted in real, authentic feeling. He sings like someone who understands that seduction and vulnerability can live in the same breath, and that tension is what makes “Taboo” feel so utterly spellbinding.

That’s why Pierre Da Silva stands out. He doesn’t flatten feeling into one clean mood; he lets longing, pleasure, hesitation, confidence, and ache all spill into the same space. “Taboo” may be built around secrecy and thrill, but its pull comes from how human it feels – how naturally Da Silva turns raw emotion into atmosphere without losing the pulse underneath. In his hands, desire becomes dimensional: Soulful, seductive, and alive with every shiver it leaves behind.

At its core, “Taboo” is about surrender – to feeling, to desire, to the fleeting moments that don’t need to be explained to be understood.

“For me, ‘Taboo’ is about a sneaky link… the fun in it,” he says with a smile. “We might not seek a relationship or want to be public but we enjoy each other’s company and the fun and keeping things light and private.” There’s a freedom in that perspective, one that trades expectation for experience and finds meaning in the moment itself.

That sense of release lingers long after the song fades. “I want people to feel more free to enjoy things… we’re always trying to be a little too cool for school,” Da Silva reflects. “I want us all to just be more free and have more fun… I feel freed.” And in that spirit, “Taboo” becomes more than a song – it becomes an invitation: To let go, to lean in, and to embrace the thrill of what we don’t always say out loud.

Pierre Da Silva recently spoke with Atwood Magazine about the emotion, intention, and freedom behind “Taboo” – and what it means to follow a feeling without overthinking it. Read our conversation below, and let yourself get pulled into “Taboo” wherever you stream music!

You, you bring the trouble
I’m falling into
I know what I’m doing
but I’m not supposed to
I can’t stop it, I don’t want to
I don’t want to, I only want you

Let’s keep it a secret
Call it Taboo
You’re just trouble and I knew
I can’t stop it, I don’t want to
I don’t want to, I only want you

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:: stream/purchase Taboo here ::

:: connect with Pierre Da Silva here ::

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Stream: “Taboo” – Pierre Da Silva

A CONVERSATION WITH PIERRE DA SILVA

Pierre Da Silva: I want people to know that I’m just your everyday guy, I’m sensitive and passionate and from that comes these stories. Whether the music is upbeat or slow and sad, it comes from a real place, of excitement, sometimes sadness, longing or even loneliness. Sometimes the music will be fun, sometimes it won’t

Pierre Da Silva: Mmm… That’s hard to answer because it depends on the day you ask. I’m a lover of pop a lover of soul, blues, and a lover of dance music too. I’m into a lot of different things. I think all those different elements show up in my music in different ways and I guess that’s what excites me.

I loooove Paolo Nutini, I love the warm soulfulness of Donny Hathaway and Gregory Porter, but I also love a big pop track everyone can sing and dance along to. I have been obsessed with Yseult these past few years, I also love how eclectic she is. Her voice sounds like it comes straight from the heavens. She can make you cry but also make you dance.

Pierre Da Silva: I wrote this song with Tommaso Medica from the band ‘bby’ at his home studio. We had started by writing a lot of sadder songs as I wasn’t in a great mental space at the time. Then the music slowly started shifting and I got to express myself in new ways and have just fun writing and cheeky things… like “Taboo.”

Pierre Da Silva: For me, “Taboo” is about a sneaky link [laughs] and the fun in it! We might not seek a relationship or want to be public, but we enjoy each other’s company and the fun and keeping things light and private!

Pierre Da Silva: I feel like I’m constantly growing and changing and expressing myself in new ways connecting with different sounds. I feel like this music is much free-er and I guess more honest than some of my previous releases. As that’s mainly due to me just coming into my own as a person and finding more confidence in who I actually am. We’re definitely stripping the layers back.

Pierre Da Silva: I love Hackney, I’ve lived in Stoke Newington for about 8-9 years now and I feel so privileged. The area is constantly changing which isn’t always a good thing, but I just love the diversity of Hackney. You get a bit of everything in the people and also with music… I saw Yseult play her first London show just a five-minute walk from my door.

Pierre Da Silva: I want people to feel more free to enjoy things. Everyone, myself included thinks a little too much about what the other person might think… We’re always trying to be a little too cool for school. I want us all to just be more free and have more fun and that’s what I feel when listening to “Taboo”… I feel freed. [laughs]

Pierre Da Silva: I LOVE female singers. I think they have the best voices, and they just know how to make you FEEL… I love RAYE and Absolutely. I’ve been really getting into this francophone singer call Naika. She sings in both English and French, definitely worth checking out.

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:: stream/purchase Taboo here ::

:: connect with Pierre Da Silva here ::

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Stream: “Taboo” – Pierre Da Silva

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