In the fierce and intense landscape of the all-time favorite football video game, a team’s success in career mode requires the touch of a supreme striker. Wonderkids in the latest instalment of EA FC features young talents in the striker position who can immediately impact a squad’s performance. It means that team managers can enjoy a victorious football journey.
Accordingly, there is no need to run across the pitch as this article already provides an elaborate list of the best wonderkids at the striker position in EA FC 25. Our list highlights the players’ playing styles, strengths, and everything you need to discover!
Top ST Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Benjamin Sesko (79 Overall)
In the lead is Benjamin Sesko, who is currently playing for RB Leipzig. In EA FC 25, he holds an 88 potential rating. His significant qualities are his distinctive physical power and unusual strength. On top of that, he is standing at a 6’4″ height. Consequently, all of these combined enable him to get a hold of defenders and blast past them when making counter-attacks.
In addition to that, he was forging a legacy with his performances in the Austrian Bundesliga and European competitions, making himself one of the continent’s brightest wonderkids. Also, he exemplifies versatility by demonstrating his technical prowess in controlling the ball and goal-making. Other teams fear him in set pieces and crosses for he does very well in aerial duels. As a team manager in career mode, Sesko would be a great option if you are looking for a blend of physicality and finesse to improve attacking options. With better nurturing, he will surely become a star player for club and country.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: RB Leipzig
Potential Rating: 88
Value: €39.5M
Rasmus Hojlund (78 Overall)
In the runner-up spot is Rasmus Hojlund. He is actively on the roster of Manchester United. Game-wise, he has a potential rating of 85. His key attributes are his awesome versatility, technical flair, and the ability to operate in tight spaces to score a goal. Holjund’s top-notch footwork and resourcefulness help him spot openings even in packed defenses.
Not to mention, he has quickly emerged through the ranks at Atlanta because of his calm and collected personality, especially in high-pressure matches. At the same time, his game is very much flexible as he can play effectively in the central striker or wider positions, making him a tactical weapon. Likewise, Holjund is more than a striker — he is a playmaker linking up plays for other team members of the football club. Based on reports, he is a prime target in EA FC 25 career mode, particularly for managers looking to build a powerful team.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Manchester United
Potential Rating: 85
Value: €29M
Maximilian Beier (78 Overall)
Ranking third is Maximilian Beier. He is now representing Borussia Dortmund football club. In the video game, he has an 85 potential rating. His fundamental traits vary from agility, sharp shooting, and scoring proficiency. In addition, Beier’s incredible IQ in the game of football allows him to gain advantages as a designated striker.
Further to this, he started his journey in the Bundesliga where he emerged as a star because of his poise in front of goal, which fans loved about him. Beier is truly gifted for he can score from anywhere using his strong left foot. Inside or outside the box is easy for him. For a young talent like him, his composure during pressure moments is amazing, making him able to make the right reads and decisions. More than his initial demonstration of skills and talent, his future is very promising, considering the determination that he has on the field. His maturity makes him a cornerstone in any attacking play. Therefore, investing in Beier is like hitting the jackpot.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Borussia Dortmund
Potential Rating: 85
Value: €29M
Marcos Leonardo Santos Almeida (77 Overall)
Listed fourth is Marcos Leonardo Santos Almeida. He is under contract with the football club Al Hilal. As a player in EA FC 25, he possesses a potential rating of 85. His important traits are his prime dribbling skills, creativity in the game, and finesse in finishing. Moreover, Almeida is capable of escaping tight defenses effortlessly with this flair on the ball and stunning footwork.
What’s more, is that the rising star has been able to impress fans and analysts with the superb talent displayed in his performances. The games he played proved to the world how he could become a threat in the final third with his sharp instincts and tenacity. Leonardo is also adept at locating blind spots to exploit, underpinning his counter-attacking capacity. He can be a playmaker too, using his vision on the field and setting up his teammates well. As he continues to gain experience, his potential will eventually turn into greatness in the game of football.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Al Hilal
Potential Rating: 85
Value: €24M
Endrick Felipe Moreira de Sousa (77 Overall)
Closing the list is Endrick Felipe Moreira de Sousa. He is currently playing for the Real Madrid football club. In the game, he holds a 91 potential rating. His main attributes are his electrifying pace, on-point ball control, and quick changes of direction.
In connection with this, Endrick has sealed his name in Brazilian football in the early stages of his career, which led him to a professional move to Real Madrid. His main weapon during matches is his capacity to use both his feet to score efficiently, proving his versatility in attacking. Subsequently, as he works his way through the ranks of football, his development will follow accordingly to become a game-changing striker.
Age: 17
Team & Contract: Real Madrid
Potential Rating: 91
Value: €24M
Conclusion
Securing an acquisition of any of the young talents on the list, including Benjamin Sesko, Rasmus Hojlund, Maximilian Beier, Marcos Leonardo, and Endrick Felipe, boosts the scoring and attacking competence of your team. All the suggested footballers offer diverse skills and profound attributes that fit any tactical arrangements, creating multiple options for a team’s offense. As a team manager, you’ll be able to set a radiant path for your club by developing your chosen players in career mode. Embrace the process of scouting wonderkids and let the good times in EA FC 25 roll!
EA FC 25 is not simply a video game. It is a dynamic and competitive world where players can make their dreams virtually come true. Correspondingly, success, especially in the career mode, lies in one’s capacity to discover and develop wonderkids. With that said, players in the Central Defensive Midfielder (CDM), Central Midfielder (CM), and Central Attacking Midfielder (CAM) positions are essential in maximizing goal-scoring opportunities and taking control of every game.
This article delves into the top choices for wonderkids in the specified positions in EA FC 25.
Top CDM Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Eduardo Camavinga (83 Overall)
Eduardo Camavinga plays for Real Madrid football club, with an EA FC 25 potential rating of 90. His key attributes are impressive tackling, accurate passing, and excellent composure, underscoring his talents in all facets of the game.
Moreover, Camavinga is a well-regarded Central Defensive Midfielder for the club and country. He is capable of breaking up opponents’ play and distributing the ball well. He also reads the game proficiently, which allows him to predict upcoming tactics. With notable potential, he will surely turn into one of the
faces of football, making him a wise investment in the game’s career mode.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Real Madrid
Potential Rating: 90
Value: €73.5M
Warren Zaïre-Emery (80 Overall)
Warren Zaïre-Emery is a part of Paris Saint Germain and he has a potential rating of 90 in EA FC 25. His core traits are amazing ball control, enduring stamina, and tactical discipline, emphasizing his versatility in the game of football.
In addition, his performance for his team enabled him to become one of the brightest wonderkids in Europe. He possesses phenomenal agility that breaks the attacks of challengers with impact. Warren’s young age presents all the room there is for growth. Sports analysts keep an eye on this player as he is projected to eventually compete against veterans in the position.
Age: 18
Team & Contract: Paris Saint Germain
Potential Rating: 90
Value: €44.5M
Top CM Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Jude Bellingham (90 Overall)
Jude Bellingham is currently playing for the football club, Real Madrid, with an EA FC 25 potential rating of 94. His pivotal qualities are his fantastic dribbling skills, incredible passing, and effective physical prowess, which allows him to make an impact in every match.
Furthermore, Bellingham’s maturity and technicality as a footballer generated his popularity in both Real Madrid and the national team of England. He is also equipped with abilities to set the game’s pace and make crucial interceptions, posing him as an essential asset in the central attacking midfielder position. Also, Bellingham’s domestic and international performances cemented his reputation as one of the best wonderkids in the league. Therefore, investing in him to be part of your team charts a hopeful journey in EA FC 25 career mode.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Real Madrid
Potential Rating: 94
Value: €174.5M
Jamal Musiala (87 Overall)
Jamal Musiala is actively affiliated with Bayern Munchen football club, and he has a potential rating of 93. His principal attributes are his creativity, ball handling, and field vision, underpinning his presence in the midfield.
At the same time, his knack for smoothly operating in narrow spaces and generating scoring chances made him a top option for the team. Moreover, defenders have a hard time catching up to him as he can maneuver past them with his brilliant footwork. Likewise, he also contributes so much on offense by putting his teammates in ideal situations with his field vision. Musiala’s reliable composure helped him to have an extraordinary impact on the international scene. Considering his remarkable potential, he is an excellent addition to any squad.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: FC Bayern Munchen
Potential Rating: 93
Value: €128M
Top CAM Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Florian Wirtz (88 Overall)
Florian Wirtz plays for Bayer 04 Leverkusen with a potential rating in EA FC 25 of 92. His essential features are his playmaking capacity, high IQ, and dribbling, putting him as a force in the attacking formations.
On top of that, Wirtz can effortlessly create offensive opportunities, establishing himself as one of the most thrilling young footballers in the club. More importantly, he has a high rating in finishing, which proves that he is an absolute threat on that end of the field. Wirtz is easily a valuable asset to the team because he is very intelligent when it comes to dribbling the ball and making use of every space available to deliver passes. Hence, his nearing development heightens his prosperous endeavor.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Potential Rating: 92
Value: €133.5M
Xavi Simons (83 Overall)
Xavi Simons is currently playing for the famous football club RB Leipzig. Additionally, he holds a potential rating of 89 in the video game EA FC 25. His notable key attributes are his striking agility, marvelous dribbling of the ball, and astonishing game resourcefulness, proving his worth for the team he plays for.
Prior to his professional stint in the league, Simons started in La Maisa, where he made waves at a very young age, which impressed scouts from RB Leipzig. In connection with this, reports indicate that he is a standout central attacking midfielder because of his football artistry and flair. At the same time, Simons plays his role well by using his passing accuracy and dribbling skills to break down the defenses of the teams they play against. Also, fans around the world were amazed by his adaptability and flexibility during high-pressure games, where great performance is required to get the win. Accordingly, any team manager in career mode must see to it that an investment in Simons is considered for the position.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: RB Leipzig
Potential Rating: 89
Value: €58.5M
Conclusion
Acquiring and cultivating young footballers, namely Eduardo Camavinga, Warren Zaire-Emery, Jude Bellingham, Jamal Musiala, Florian Wirtz, and Xavi Simons, lays a firm groundwork for creating a promising future. Filling the spots with the right pieces increases the chances of a triumphant career mode in EA FC 25. Take on the challenge of finding and nurturing talents, and watch everything fall into place!
Are you excited to finally get and play the all-new EA FC 25? Well, don’t let your excitement allow you to overlook the most crucial part —recruiting the best players for your team.
In the latest instalment of the fan-favorite video game, every user can form a squad with wonderkids from every position. Accordingly, a team manager in the career mode must acquire the most ideal selection, especially in the left midfielder and left-wing positions. When combined, both positions produce a balanced attack on the left side of the pitch.
This article offers a streamlined list highlighting the most outstanding choices in each position, paving the way for you to seal the deal!
Top LM Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Florian Wirtz (88 Overall)
Leading the ranks is the talented young left midfielder Florian Wirtz. At the current time, he is playing for Bayer 04 Leverkusen in Europe. Ever since the start of his career, players and coaches instantly recognized his impressive technical skills and tactical awareness. Accordingly, it had set the stage for him to rapidly become a vital piece for Leverkusen, especially in attacking formation.
In terms of his style of play, he showcases his exceptional dribbling proficiency, on-point passing, and crystal vision of the ball. Wirtz also has a great command of the game, which often decides the tempo of the match. Opponents also stress his amazing ability to exploit defensive gaps. Moreover, the team considers him an ace player in offense and defense.
When it comes to the career mode in EA FC 25, Wirtz is among the top wonderkids with the highest potential for growth. Adding him to your lineup seriously turns your team into a world-class contender.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Potential Rating: 92
Value: €133.5M
Jamal Musiala (87 Overall)
Claiming the second position is Jamal Musiala, a wonderkid in the left midfielder position. Right now, he is a part of the football club Bayern München. He is well-known for his creativity in the game and his technical knacks. Using his distinguished talent, he quickly rose through the ranks in Bayern’s youth academy. Additionally, it facilitated the way for him to outrank his peers.
In the context of the approach to playing, he easily glides past any defender, since he can magically play with the ball by dribbling. At the same time, challengers have a hard time breaking down his gameplay because he mastered agility and balance. What makes him even harder to play against is his capacity to unlock defenses with his game IQ. Every time he has the ball, you can surely count on him scoring a goal.
Regarding the video game, Musiala’s potential mirrors his future of becoming a cornerstone in any team he plays for. His versatility and flexibility can boost your squad’s chances of winning at the highest level.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: FC Bayern München
Potential Rating: 93
Value: €128M
Top LW Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Pedro González López (86 Overall)
Dominating the wonderkids standings in the left-wing position is Pedro González López. Presently, he is playing for FC Barcelona. His highly regarded attribute is his intelligence on the ball. In line with this, what separates him from other wingers is his trick to seamlessly transition from defense to offense, underscoring his power to set the game’s pace.
Furthermore, Pedro shines whenever he creates spaces between the lines and leads a play for his teammates. Simultaneously, tight defenses look like an open field for him due to his mastery in navigating the pitch. Pedro also possesses precise passing ability and crossing that enhances the squad’s set play. Likewise, he does the grunt work of tracking back to support the defensive end of a possession.
In EA FC 25 career mode, Pedro offers a stunning option on the left flank. His potential rating means he is on the way to becoming a high-caliber footballer. Hence, Pedro is a great choice if your team needs to compete for titles.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: FC Barcelona
Potential Rating: 90
Value: €98.5M
Pablo Martín Páez Gavira (83 Overall)
Attaining the second spot for the recommended left wing is Pablo Martín Páez Gavira. Similar to the first suggestion, he is also a talent playing for FC Barcelona. What a great time for the football club, right? Anyway, the wonderkid had already introduced himself to the world with his aggression in the game. He is one of the top choices on the team mainly because of his innate understanding of sports and versatility on the left side of the field.
Pertaining to his gameplay, Gavi is applauded for his tenacity. He does everything on the field, from driving the ball to winning it back for the team. Possession after possession. In addition, his creativity in playing during matches frequently opens scoring opportunities. To cut it short, his talent at a very young age shows that his ongoing maturity in the game holds a bright future.
In the realm of EA FC 25, Gavi is a wonderkid who brings a lot to the table, underlining his skills on the left wing. Consequently, he is considerably a smart investment for any team manager.
Age: 19
Team & Contract: FC Barcelona
Potential Rating: 90
Value: €70.5M
Conclusion
In summary, it cannot be stressed enough that choosing among the wonderkids is one brilliant way to secure a bright future for your football career in EA FC 25. Thus, make sure to use our list, including young talents, mainly Florian Wirtz, Jamal Musiala, Pedro González López, and Pablo Martín Páez Gavira, as your guide to come up with the right picks.
All team managers in career mode can easily form a dynamic and capable squad with these players who bring unique skills and limitless potential. The suggestions given above may take time to develop fully, but their strong talents will be enough to stay competitive at present.
Most importantly, you will be able to utilize them for a long time since you started them young, stretching your time as the best team in the game for long-term success.
The world of EA FC 25 awaits you! So, prepare yourselves to build the ultimate legacy in the football realm.
As part of the tradition, players look forward to the team manager position in the career mode of the game. They anticipate the opportunity to establish teams and nurture new talents. Correspondingly, one must be able to successfully fill the right midfielder and right-wing positions. Both of these positions serve an integral role in balancing the squad’s structure by providing width, creativity, and scoring opportunities. Hence, the trending need for wonderkids. For that reason, check out this article as we spotlight the best choices for the top right midfielder (RM) and right-wing (RW) wonderkids in EA FC 25.
Top RM Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Nicholas Williams Arthur (85 Overall)
Topping the list for the right midfielder position is wonderkid Nicholas Williams Arthur. At present, he is part of the football crew Athletic Club. Mainly, his key attributes are dribbling, speed, and technicality.
In terms of his playing style, Williams is recognized for his explosive pace and defensive coverage. At the same time, he is also hard to defend because he wisely uses his agility to make swift changes of direction. Additionally, he effectively mixes his top-notch dribbling skills with technical finesse, which creates flank chances that contribute to the outcome of the attack. Williams’ speed also pushes defenses to stretch and forces overlapping runs, generating depth to the squad’s offensive tactics.
He frequently exploits gaps in the opponent’s defense due to his keen tactical awareness. Moreover, Williams is not afraid to do the dirty work of tracking back to help the team’s defense whenever necessary. In the game, betting on an investment in him is like entering a fight where your opponent loses by default. In short, Williams is a key figure in pursuing success in EA FC 25.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Athletic Club
Potential Rating: 89
Value: €78.5M
Alejandro Garnacho Ferreyra (79 Overall)
Holding the number two spot is the rising star, Alejandro Garnacho Ferreyra. He is currently playing for Manchester United in the right midfielder position. Ferreyra’s key attributes are his creativity, agility, and dribbling.
With regard to his playing style, he is a highly skilled footballer who looks forward to battling defenders in one-on-one scenarios. His dynamic agility and brilliant footwork help him navigate the field, especially in tight spaces to convert opportunities into goals. In addition, Garnacho delivers precise crosses into the box using his creative flair, underscoring his position to be a threat on both ends of the pitch.
Furthermore, what separates Ferreyra from other players in the position is his mentality and confidence. He takes risks like no other, frequently taking audacious skills to turn the course of the game around. Besides, he is a player that a team can count on during crucial moments, after proving himself to be capable of performing against top-tier names in the game. His talent and skills cemented his name on the big stage. Gamewise, mixing Garnacho into your team represents young talent that potentially will develop into something more useful in the future.
Age: 20
Team & Contract: Manchester United
Potential Rating: 87
Value: €38.5M
Top RW Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Lamine Yamal (81 Overall)
Dominating the first spot is the young Lamine Yamal. He is part of the Barcelona football club. Specifically, his best attributes are pace, creativity, and dribbling.
Pertaining to his playing techniques, Yamal is literally one of the youngest talents in the world of football, who possesses remarkable skills. According to many players who have faced him, he is truly a menace on the field with his incredible dribbling magnificence. He can also smoothly glide past challengers and create enough space for everyone to change the game’s tempo. Most importantly, he makes his team more efficient and collaborative by serving as an effective playmaker.
Teams do not underestimate Yamal as he has already broken so many records while being part of Barcelona’s first team. His future is also guaranteed as his willingness to learn and develop marks his edge as a youth. Moreover, Yamal remains in the zone even during high-stakes matches, emphasizing his immense confidence to make the right decisions under pressure. In EA FC 25, Yamal is definitely a game-changer.
Age: 16
Team & Contract: FC Barcelona
Potential Rating: 94
Value: €58.5M
Bradley Barcola (80 Overall)
Occupying the second slot for the top right wings is Bradley Barcola. At present, he is playing for Paris Saint Germain. Barcola’s main attributes are versatility, dribbling, and speed.
As for his techniques in playing, he is the ultimate attacker who operates perfectly across the front line. Barcola is very much capable of opening opportunities to score a goal and forcing defenses to collapse with his speed and dribbling skills. Above all, he is considered an asset to the team because of his versatility, proving his ability to play on either flank.
In addition, he has a sense of directness when playing. For some amazing reason, Barcola is always eager to take on defenders. He also proves himself to be a formidable threat by being able to play different roles and putting himself in critical areas. In the video game, Barcola is surely a wise investment considering his potential to grow as one of the best in the game.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Paris Saint Germain
Potential Rating: 87
Value: €43M
Conclusion
To wrap it up, if you want to elevate your career mode in EA FC 25, you must make it a point to look for the right wonderkids. The suggested players in our list, such as Nicholas Williams Arthur and Alejandro Garnacho Ferreyra in the right midfielder position, along with Lamine Yamal and Bradley Barcola on the right wing all bring quality talent. More importantly, they are projected to become the top premier players in the league. Hence, investing in them will give you the much-needed boost for your team’s competitive battle for titles.
In the same sense, keeping these footballers on your radar enables you to select the right picks in building a young and dynamic squad. If you aspire to win gloriously, you must learn how to navigate the career more through completing the right pieces of the puzzle.
Above all, don’t take these wonderkid’s suggestions as a risk where you’ll lose horribly, instead treat this list as a free pass to a successful and fun career in EA FC 25.
In the history of EA FC, scouting for young talents is a must if you want to create a strong foundation for a squad. In turn, the significance of choosing the best full-backs cannot be overstated. They are an integral piece to the puzzle of great defense and solid offense. Accordingly, managers won’t have to worry as wonderkids provide the ultimate opportunity for long-term success. With that said, look no more, for this article will highlight some of the most standout right-backs and left-backs, who can help your team reap the rewards.
Top RB Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Alejandro Balde Martínez (81 Overall)
Our top pick for the right-back position is the emerging star Alejandro Balde Martínez. At present, he is playing for FC Barcelona. He made his professional football debut at the age of 17, solidifying his impressive youth rank journey. Balde is the team’s top-first defensive option as he is able to outpace every winger with this explosive playing style. He also exudes great command from the right side using his keen eye for a cross and dribbling skills to get past defenders.
Moreover, Balde also has a high IQ for the game, considering his age. He knows how to time every move by knowing when to stay back and push forward, which balances his distributions on both ends of the field. Attribute-wise, he has top-notch agility, crossing, and speed. With these abilities, Blade ensures a perfect mix of defense and offense in his game.
As a video game player, his entire arsenal enables him to play traditionally in the right-back position and as a wing-back in attacking formations. Overall, Balde will surely contribute to any team in career mode, especially if the squad is in need of a player with a complete package of skills.
Age: 20
Team & Contract: FC Barcelona
Potential Rating: 89
Value: €54M
Malo Gusto (80 Overall)
The second-best bet for the right-back position is Malo Gusto. He continues to make waves in European football as he plays for Chelsea. Gusto started with a stint at Lyon, then later joined his current team which allowed him to rapidly develop into a promising talent. Based on reports, he keeps a combination of speed, tactical ability, and technical prowess that separates him from several wonderkids in the game. Gusto also offers a stellar blend of defensive coverage and offensive attacking that help his team overcome high-pressure matches.
When it comes to characteristics, he makes going up and down the right flank like a walk in the park with this remarkable pace and stamina. At the same time, he has become a powerful outlet for forwards and wingers due to his ability to make effective crosses. In short, he has everything necessary to maximize his potential growth in EA FC 25.
More importantly, Gusto has proven his flexibility by being able to adapt to a variety of tactical arrangements. As a manager in career mode, Gusto should be the top pick as he gives a flawless mix of a defensive-minded approach and a strong attacking technique.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Chelsea
Potential Rating: 86
Value: €31.5M
Top LB Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Eduardo Camavinga (83 Overall)
Our leading candidate for the left-back position is Eduardo Camavinga. Although he started as a midfielder, Eduardo has seamlessly transitioned to the new position for Real Madrid, underscoring his versatility. His top-rated ability is the way he transitions from defense to offense. Additionally, he is also proficient in reading the game while making tactical decisions, which elevates his intercepting moves.
Focusing more on aspects, Camavinga is the ultimate facilitator, rendered by his outstanding vision and dribbling skills, which create chances for other players on the team. In the same sense, he is considered a well-rounded player, highlighting his ball control, defensive awareness, and passing. Above anything else, he is not limited to his assigned position as he can fill multiple roles efficiently.
At a very early age, he has already made himself well-known with his bright talent. Subsequently, he will surely turn into an elite fullback in the game as long as he receives the right nurturing in career mode. Team managers won’t regret a thing if they consider adding him to the squad.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Real Madrid
Potential Rating: 90
Value: €73.5M
Destiny Udogie (82 Overall)
The key choice for the second left-back slot is Destiny Udogie. He is currently playing for Tottenham Hotspur. Before that, he gained traction in Serie A and the Premier League in just a matter of time. Udogie brings an impeccable fusion of physicality, speed, power, and technical knowledge to the table. In line with this, his noteworthy performances earned him the chance to play for the team, where he excelled as a key player on the left side of the pitch.
In the context of qualities, he also performs well on both offense and defense, regardless of the planned strategic formation. In fact, he is regarded for his feats in delivering dangerous balls into the box, which opens the door for other players on the team to score a point. Udogie is highly rated for his pace and stamina as well.
In the career mode of the latest version of the game, managers who include him in the squad can bolster the left flank with a player that can strengthen defense and be an offensive threat simultaneously. More than that, his young age should not be mistaken for a risky acquisition. Instead, managers should become visionaries by not focusing on immediate impact and more on the team’s future endeavours.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Tottenham Hotspur
Potential Rating: 86
Value: €41.5M
Conclusion
To sum it up, the wonderkids we have included in our list can set the way for the best path toward the EA FC 25 pinnacle. They may be young and need some more development but they surely will make an immediate impact on your team’s performance. Make sure to consider them when completing your crew to ensure a bright future.
Likewise, as a manager in career mode, you must be responsible enough to nurture these young footballers to be victorious. Eventually, their potential and growth will be valuable additions to remain on top amidst the ever-evolving game of football.
Are you a big fan of EA FC career more? Well, this should be a great time for you as it is about to find the latest CB wonderkids within the game.
As many gamers around the world dive into the immersive world of EA FC 25, it is crucial to learn how to create a balanced team to compete at the highest level. Accordingly, any team manager must have an eye for the best center-backs, giving importance to defense and offense. In line with this, the most anticipated aspect of the Career Mode is the experience of discovering and developing wonderkids. These young players can be an asset to the foundation of a victorious squad. If you have no idea where to start, continue reading this article as we explore five exceptional center-back wonderkids in EA FC 25.
Top CB Wonderkids in EA FC 25
António Joao Tavares Silva (79 Overall)
For center-backs, the brightest candidate among the emerging players of the game is António Joao Tavares Silva. He is currently playing for the club Sporting CP. At a very young age, Silva entered the league and immediately demonstrated his skills, specializing in defense and technicality.
Gamewise, Silva is safe to say excellent! He is recognized for his amazing positioning and mind-blowing ability to read situations. The young player can easily predict an opposing team’s move and plan. It allows him to make interceptions and disruptions in the competitor’s play. Silva’s tackling proficiency is precise and clean, frequently making his team get the ball back.
More importantly, he is dedicated to improving his game off the pitch. With an 87 potential rating, he is easily an ideal choice for anyone looking to hire a future star.
Age: 20
Team & Contract: Benfica
Potential Rating: 87
Value: €36M
Castello Lukeba (79 Overall)
Joining the top contenders for center-backs is Castello Lukeba from RB Leipzig. At the early stage of his game, he has already proven himself as one of the standout defenders on the pitch.
What separates Lukeba from the others in the position is his remarkable physicality. He is capable of maneuvering in tight scenarios using his strength and agility, making him a tough competitor even against elite attackers of the game. Similarly, he is a force to reckon with in the air, frequently winning headers on defense and during set pieces.
Off the pitch, he is praised for his humbleness and respectable family values. Additionally, Lukeba holds a potential rating of 86 in EA FC 25. Hence, he is a great pick if you are planning to build the best team with the best defender.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: RB Leipzig
Potential Rating: 86
Value: €33M
Arnau Martínez Lopez (79 Overall)
Ranking third in our list is the emerging icon in Spanish football, Arnau Martínez Lopez. At present, he is playing as a center-back for Girona. He took part in the local youth academy back in his hometown, where he enhanced his overall skills and understanding of the game.
Global fans applaud him for his intelligence in defense approaches. He combines technicality with robust tackling. Furthermore, he is an exceptional passer, even from the back, underscoring his contributions to the team’s success.
Similar to most players on the list, Lopez is dedicated to improving his game for the future of his career. He currently has a potential rating of 85 in the video game. Based on evaluations, Lopez definitely has more room for growth, making him a strong option for managers aiming to acquire a versatile player.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Girona
Potential Rating: 85
Value: €26.5M
Ousmane Diomande (78 Overall)
One of the rising talents in EA FC 25 at the center-back position is Ousmane Diomande. He is currently playing for Sporting CP. Diomande’s journey to the league is a reflection of his talent and determination to achieve his football dream. He pursued the ultimate goal by going to Europe and joining Sporting’s youth academy.
Many strikers in the game fear Diomande as he is very much capable of combining his physicality and pace. He wisely uses his strength to engage in duels against any attacker and quickly recovers to defend with his speed.
In the video game, he has a potential rating of 86, mostly because of the blend of attributes he displays. Diomande’s will to compete at the highest level shows that he is a great candidate for any manager.
Age: 20
Team & Contract: Sporting CP
Potential Rating: 86
Value: €29M
Murillo Costa Dos Santos (78 Overall)
Finishing the list on a high note is Murillo Costa Dos Santos. The dynamic center-back is paying for Nottingham Forest. The footballer did not waste any time in his career as he already established himself as a key piece for the club’s defense.
Murillo’s most outstanding advantage is his agility, which enables him to swiftly change his position to challenge opponents. At the same time, even if the attacker loses him, he can immediately recover and pin down any threat.
More than the obvious capabilities, he is known for his promising leadership qualities. As a result, he is given an 84 potential rating in the game, which solidifies the fact that he is one of the game’s future stars.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Nottingham Forest
Potential Rating: 84
Value: €20.5M
Conclusion
The five center-back wonderkids included in our list are the most promising young players in the career mode of the popular game. As you manage your team, you can go back and review each player’s unique strengths and significant potential growth that makes them ideal prospects for achieving your dream in EA FC 25.
Taking the risk and investing in António Joao Tavares Silva, Castello Lukeba, Arnau Martínez Lopez, Murillo Costa Dos Santos, and Ousmane Diomande can establish the defensive prowess of your squad. Their talents on both ends of the field will push your opponents to the edge. Therefore, you should add them to your list to keep your options broad and be able to select the best of the best!
With EA FC 25 on the horizon, the gaming community is gearing up to build the ultimate dream team on their career mode.
Accordingly, as gamers enter the EA FC 25’s Career Mode, the goalkeeper is one significant position that can immensely influence your team’s success. A goalkeeper who can be counted on will mean the difference between defeat and victory, underscoring the importance of scouting for the best young talent there is. Well, you are in luck! This article features some of the top GK wonderkids and youth players for career mode in EA FC 25.
Top GK Wonderkids in EA FC 25
Guillaume Restes (78 Overall)
Standing mighty at the pinnacle is the rising star in the line of goalkeeper, Guillaume Restes. He is currently a player for Toulouse. Prior to becoming the top goalkeeper option for his team, he started his football career in the youth academy of Lyon.
Based on records, Restes possesses an EA FC 25 potential rating of 88, becoming the rank 1 among the wonderkids in the position. He has perfectly demonstrated his one-of-a-kind reflex and shot-blocking capabilities. Most attackers consider him a nightmare in aerial situations for he does his job effectively, maximizing his 6’4″ height. Subsequently, his remarkable games were immediately noticed by the fans and more importantly, by the popular European clubs.
Furthermore, his strong command of his area, superb composure, and strong positional sense enable him to create crucial saves in one-on-one scenarios. Adding him to your roster is like paving the way for one of the greatest goalkeepers in the game, as long as you put in the necessary training, experience, and knowledge.
Age: 19
Team & Contract: Toulouse
Potential Rating: 88
Value: €26M
Bart Verbruggen (76 Overall)
Another notable young goalkeeper is Bart Verbruggen. He is currently playing for Brighton & Hove Albion, where he has already become a pivotal player and the number-one goalkeeper for the club. Before joining the professional league, he started his career at FC Groningen, where he enhanced his game through valuable experience. Fortunately for him, the club he belongs to is known for nurturing young talents like him.
Verbruggen has a potential rating of 87 in the game. Additionally, he is known for his remarkably powerful physical presence and also for his aerial capabilities. During set-pieces, he is able to dominate in the box with his 6’3 height. The goalkeeper from the Netherlands became a tough competitor for any striker due to his quick reflexes and high IQ in the game.
Moreover, he has proven himself to be capable of rising in challenges and maintaining good composure amidst high-stakes pressure. Verbruggen’s ability to distribute also allows the entire team to become more effective and build up plays. For these reasons, he would be a great investment in EA FC 25 career mode.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Brighton & Hove Albion
Potential Rating: 84
Value: €14.5M
Antonín Kinský (74 Overall)
Ranking third is the promising young goalkeeper named Antonín Kinský. At the moment, he is playing for Slavia Praha. Kinsky became the best player for the first team in the youth academy after working his way through the ranks.
He holds a potential rating of 85 in EA FC 25 mainly because of his outstanding agility and reflexes, which makes him one of the top shot-stoppers in the game. Kinsky is also at his best during one-on-one matches against opponents, underpinning his tough mindset and tactical awareness. Making use of his 6’2 height, he is not scared to leave his line to claim crosses.
Kinsky’s playing style is also effective for initiating counter-attacks, specifically his distribution skills. With the developing talent, he is on his way to becoming one of the premier players in the league.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Slavia Praha
Potential Rating: 82
Value: €8M
Jonas Urbig (73 Overall)
At the fourth spot is Jonas Urbig, who is a player in the goalkeeper position for FC Köln. His potential was quickly recognized in Koln’s youth academy. In fact, he made his professional debut at the young age of 17, showcasing his immense talent at an early stage of his career.
Urbig has a potential rating of 84 in the game. His main specialties are shot-stopping and positioning. Urbig is also a beast from various angles as he can rapidly move across the goal. In the same sense, his athleticism compensates for his not-so-impressive 6’1 height. He’s even known for throwing accurate long passes.
Accordingly, his growing experience in the game makes him an ideal mainstay in your team for career mode.
Age: 20
Team & Contract: FC Köln
Potential Rating: 84
Value: €6M
James Trafford (73 Overall)
Completing the list is the talented James Trafford, a young goalkeeper playing for Burnley. He started his career in Manchester, gaining useful knowledge and experience in the youth setup before entering the professional scene.
Trafford possesses a potential rating of 85, particularly generated by his excellence in shot-stopping and area command. At the same time, his quick reflexes make him a reliable player during pressure situations, including penalty kicks and close matches.
His ability to track attackers’ moves and catch them off guard is top-notch. With this impressive skill set, Trafford can easily become a sought-after goalkeeper in any team.
Age: 21
Team & Contract: Burnley
Potential Rating: 84
Value: €6M
Conclusion
A keen eye and a little bit of riskiness are necessary when creating a triumphant EA FC 25 career-mode team from the ground up, particularly in the goalkeeper position. Taking a chance on rising players such as Guillaume Restes, Bart Verbruggen, Antonín Kinský, Jonas Urbig, and James Trafford, any user can build a substantial foundation for his team. Moreover, these young talented goalkeepers do not only have the skills to perform excellently on the pitch but also have the amazing potential to emerge as valuable assets for future investment.
Including the players on the provided list secures the reliable defense your team will possess for years to come. However, you also hold the responsibility to ensure the development of these players by putting them through training and matches for them to become key players on your road to success. Therefore, you must seize the moment to acquire the listed players and go on your journey to becoming the best team in EA FC 25!
Mythopoetics, the remarkable record Nandi Rose released as Half Waif in 2019, wove together stories from her life and family, contending with ideas of legacy and aging in grand, sweeping fashion. It’s so densely packed that listening to the album now feels almost like revisiting a greatest hits collection; I remember hearing many of its songs for the first time as if it were yesterday. But a single glance at material collected on Half Waif’s brand new LP, the 17-track See You at the Maypole, is a stark reminder of the violent and miraculous passage of time, just how much a few years contain. Rose made the record in the midst, or the edges, of immense personal turmoil: she found out she was pregnant in the summer of 2021, then endured a miscarriage that December, followed by months of medical complications. Working with co-producer Zubin Hensler, Rose hangs onto the music to capture the cosmic tide of anticipation, the magnitude of hurt and exhaustion, the hunger for a road ahead, the sounds of rejoicing in beauty and community, all swirling into one. It’s the kind of album we tend to call an emotional triumph, but it’s also a marvel of attention: to Rose’s immediate surroundings, to her stream of consciousness, to the particular cadence and melodic potential of words, to the textures and colour in music and beyond. It’s in this transformative wavelength Rose hopes we can all meet: feet firm on the ground, head up to taste the sky, moving on.
We caught up with Half Waif to talk about some of the inspirations behind See You at the Maypole, including driving, Sibylle Baier, mother figures, Sufjan Stevens’ The Age of Adz, and more.
Driving
Driving is referenced throughout the album, but the song that stands out most is ‘I-90’. It combines a lot of what driving signifies on the album – searching, loss, freedom, sunset hunting. Tell me what it brings up for you.
For a while, I lived in New York City, and I toured a lot in the 2010s, coming up as a band. At that point, I actually really didn’t like driving, so I had my bandmates drive. To this day, I still don’t drive in New York City. But driving where I live now, in upstate New York – I live less than an hour from where I grew up in Western Massachusetts, so these kinds of roads, this landscape, it’s so familiar to me. When I learned to drive, I was driving these kinds of roads – small county roads, county highways – which is so different from getting on a big open highway, which I’ll get to about I-90. I was doing a lot of driving that winter around country roads near my house, listening to music, but I also came up with this technique that I ended up using a lot on the record – not that this is an innovative technique, but it was new to me – which is to record voice memos. Sometimes I would sing, but sometimes I would just speak. A couple songs on the album, like ‘Shirtsleeves’, have voice memos in them. But ‘Sunset Hunting’ actually started as a completely spoken voice memo. I got in the car, turned on the voice memo on, and just started narrating. I later went back and added a melody and chords to that.
‘I-90’ also began as a voice memo. That whole end section – “driving into purple twilight” – was me improvising and them transcribing it to the chords of that song. You mentioned freedom – it’s funny, I hadn’t thought of it that way, but there’s a certain amount of freedom you have in the container of your car, to sing and try things out. And I never really thought to press record before and capture those moments. But it became a way to ground myself in the moment and describe my surroundings and what was happening. The end section of ‘I-90’ is just me singing about, yeah, driving into purple twilight, and there’s a truck, a sunset, white lines on the road, green trees – it was really just narrating as a way to put a stake in the ground at a time in my life where it felt like things were getting away from me.
My life had taken a detour. It looked so different than I thought it was going to look. I just had a miscarriage out of nowhere with no signs or symptoms. My body was not recovering, I was not moving on, I was very stuck in this physical vessel. And so, to get in the car and feel that sense of motion, and then be able to ground myself in a moment that felt so difficult to be in, but I was forcing myself to be there – to say, “Okay, this what’s happening, this is what I see,” and, “There is motion, even if I don’t feel it in my body,” because I was moving forward in the car. I think that was a way to give myself something that I was lacking. And it’s really cool that these songs were born out of this very specific way of writing.
More specifically, you mentioned sunset hunting, and that was almost a spiritual practice I developed during that time. I literally felt like I was hunting something – I was hungry for it. I needed to feed off this phenomenon that happened every night and that I couldn’t see at my house, there’s too many trees surrounding us. So I had to get in the car and physically go find them. It was a way of, first of all, bringing color into my life at a very colourless time. It was winter, not a lot of colour in the landscape, my life felt very bleak. I needed to see this glorious display in the sky. I needed a reminder that there was still motion, change, and transformation cycles, even when I felt like I wasn’t moving forward. And just wanting to find beauty. The winter is a brutal time – where I live, there’s not a lot of easily accessible beauty. You kind of have to go and find it, because I didn’t love my life. I didn’t like what it looked like. But I knew that I wanted to get back to the land of the living in a sort of sense – driving, getting in the car, fed into that idea.
I love this idea of motion as being grounding – at the same time, I’m thinking of another line from ‘Sunset Hunting’, about how getting in the car can also be a reminder that the world just goes on without us. Maybe you go out and find beauty, but you may also get the sense that the world is spinning at a rate that you can’t keep up with.
Absolutely. At that moment, I just felt like I had dropped out of the world. I think when we go through times of personal turmoil or crisis or catastrophe, you just feel you’ve been chucked out of orbit. And you’re like, “Wait a minute, everyone is going about their lives, and it’s all happening, and I’m not a part of it anymore.” That’s what that line is about: “I’m going sunset hunting, I can’t stand the thought that the world is going on without me.” And again, that was a narration. I don’t know if you’ve ever done morning pages from The Artist’s Way, but it sort of felt like that process of: you can just say anything, and you don’t have to use it, but it was interesting, the things that came up when I just allowed myself to talk to myself and recorded that.
I did want to briefly mention ‘I-90’, because I think that’s an interesting one where, I was driving on this major highway – I don’t love driving on the highway, and there’s something sort of terrifying about it where you’re facing your own mortality. That song is a lot about aging and facing what’s ahead for us – the “explosion on the road ahead” that we’re all sort of moving towards. So I think that song has this ominous undercurrent. I actually hadn’t put it together before, but it’s interesting that that’s the one that’s the highway song, and the other driving songs were these barren country roads. I think that feeling got transmuted into that song as well.
Sufjan Stevens’ The Age of Adz
Musically, the density and scope of the album seems to be a reference pointon See You at the Maypole.
Spot on. [laughs] I’m definitely a Sufjan fan, but I hadn’t heard Age of Adz. I don’t know how I missed that era. During one of my recording sessions in Brooklyn with Zubin Hensler, my dear friend and co-producer, who was very much at the heart of this entire album, he brought that album up. I believe it was in reference to – I actually think it might have been ‘I-90’, but specifically talking about how to bring sounds forward in moments of density. You said the word “density,” and that’s exactly what it was. He was like, “Well, you should hear this Sufjan record.” I’m relating it to us getting on a Revel, one of those mopeds you can rent around the city – I don’t live in the city anymore, so I don’t know, but I think it’s called Revel. [laughs] Zubin and I got on one, driving through the night streets, and I think he had just told me about this record.
In any case, it was a big light bulb moment for both of us, to build a reference of music that was built around songs — I mean, he’s a songwriter, very clearly and very brilliantly, but he’s also so interested in textural arrangements. I think I’ve felt a little self-conscious in the past about how drawn I am to density, and maybe in the past didn’t have as much skill to carve around it. In general, with this, Zubin and I were trying to pare down the arrangements, but in moments where we wanted a mix of synths and chamber instruments, Age of Adz provided a really helpful reference. It’s hard to find exact references for what you’re working on, but when you do, it’s like such a beacon to be like, “Ah, someone has done this!” Because so often when you’re in the studio, you’re fumbling around in the dark and trying to put words to ideas and trying to put words to ideas about sound – it needs new language. I think Zubin and I have come up with a really good working language where we get each other, but in those moments when we’re struggling to find a way forward, pulling in a reference like that is so helpful. That was a big turning point specifically in the production for both of us.
I’m also thinking about it from a lyrical standpoint, in the sense that that album saw him leaning more heavily toward personal themes. I don’t know if you thought about this in relation to See You at the Maypole, but there is a different level of exposure and intensity that you allow for, too.
That’s another thing that I really admire Sufjan Stevens for, is that he has historically – and I love Javelin, his new record, too – mined these intense personal moments and infused them with a shot of joy and celebration. There are moments that feel ecstatic on all of his records, particularly the newer ones, where you just feel your body want to abandon, surrender – almost religious in the way that it feels ecstatic. Certainly spiritual.
For me, with this experience of miscarriage, and then my mother-in-law was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a month later, it was just like thunderheads of intensity. Experiencing this kind of grief was – [laughs] I was going to say it was almost joyful, but I don’t think that’s the right word. There’s a feeling of moving through grief – when you go so deep into that place of soul annihilation, you connect more deeply with the world. When I went through this experience, I felt like I understood this vibration of humanity in a way that I was not attuned to before. I think that’s where the celebratory piece comes from, this is just part of the human experience, and I see you. I see you in that. I understand you more deeply, and we can connect in this place. That’s the idea of See You at the Maypole: I’ll see you there, my friend. We’re all going to be there, dancing out our demons and calling in springtime after this really intense winter. We’ll all be there together.
I think that specifically was something I wanted to do with this record. I always try to inject a feeling of hope into the music, but I really felt it in this experience. I felt both devastating grief and isolation, and then on the other side of it, total connection and resilience within community. There’s a Glennon Doyle quote that I keep coming back to in regards to this, and it’s something like, “I entered this ache alone, and on the other side, I found everybody else.” That was how I felt and how I wanted the music to feel. So, we had a lot of players come in, a lot of different sounds, and much more live instrumentation. Getting back to Sufjan, I think that is a real hallmark of his music. You hear Carrie & Lowell – talk about the most gutting material, and there’s a lot of shimmering beauty and uplifting feeling even in that most devastating moment. I love that about his music.
Alexander Chee’s How to Write an Autobiographical Novel
This was a book that I was reading when I first went away to really consciously start crafting a new body of work, which became See You at the Maypole. At the end of August 2021, I went to a cabin that my husband’s family owns in the Catskills. So I went on my own little writing retreat, and I had never been there alone before. It was a really amazing experience. It was a little scary; it’s like out in the woods, and I would hear all these animals calling at night, just waiting for the morning. [laughs] But my days were just overflowing with ideas. It’s where I wrote ‘King of Tides’, ‘I-90’, and ‘Heartwood’, all within that three-day writing session. I’d take breaks from writing, and I would go and read Alexander Chee, so I feel like the essence of his writing and some of his themes wove their way in, whether consciously or not.
Specifically, I remember there’s an essay about Tarot and his experience of coming to Tarot, and it was something I was thinking about a lot at the time. I was really looking for signs. I was very open-hearted, like, “Bring my universe closer,” the line from ‘King of Tides’. I was right at the precipice of my journey to motherhood. I knew when I got back from the cabin, I was taking out my IUD, and that was the beginning of this journey. A month later, I was pregnant. It just felt like this time of reading the world for these clues and signs. I really had my ear to the ground – my future calling to me, I felt it. I felt the future calling. I think he was talking about king tides, which are like these extremely high tides. And then I was working on this song, and I called it ‘King of Tides’ because it sounded like a Tarot card. And right before my trip, I had gotten this Vedic astrology reading from a friend of mine, and he told me my moon was in my ninth house, and I didn’t even know what that meant. But I was like, “In the time of the Tarot, the ninth house moon,” which is how the beginning of ‘King of Tides’ goes.
So that was directly related to that song, but more generally, this idea of peering into the future and it’s all swirling with mist, but you’re looking so intently ahead, just wanting to know what’s going to happen. And of course, I had no idea. We can’t know. I had no idea that that record, which I thought was going to be this… I mean, that song, “Bring my universe closer,” I felt like I was at the threshold of something so sweet and magnanimous and magnificent. I was about to be a mother, and then it was totally taken away in this very brutal and visceral way, and I went on such a journey throughout the next year until I conceived again. So we can’t know what’s ahead, but that was a time in my life where I felt hopeful about the future, perhaps naively so. But anything that would tell my future, I was eating up.
Harmonizing speech videos on YouTube
Quite different from everything else we’ve been talking about.
[laughs] Yes.
But seeing that listed, I can hear the influence on songs like ‘Shirtsleeves’ and ‘Heartwood’. What took you down that rabbit hole?
I’m happy to talk about this, also because obviously, there’s a certain amount of seriousness and gravity to a lot of my work and a lot of what I write about, and certainly the material that inspired this album. It’s heavy. But there’s also a lot of play and experimentation in writing music and creating albums. I just absolutely adore the process, and I think I will do it for the rest of my life, no matter if anyone will hear it or not. Writing those songs is so integral to my being and the way I process the world, but it’s also crucial that there’s this lightness to it as well. I need that in the process, so it’s not just like ringing my heart out at the piano, you know? There is a lot of levity and joy in the process of writing, and this was part of it, this technique that I was exploring on a few songs.
I think ‘Shirtsleeves’ was the first one that I did it on, but it very much came from – I hadn’t watched these in a while, but I was remembering that as a category of YouTube videos that people would do with these memes like, “Oh, my God! A double rainbow!” And you go, [harmonizing] “Oh, my God! A double rainbow!” Following the cadence with melody is such a fascinating technique, and as a vocalist and someone who thinks of voice as my primary instrument, it really unlocked this new way of thinking about creating rhythm. I actually made a video for Ableton’s series One Thing, where I talked about this exact process of taking spoken word and creating a melody over it. It’s slightly different, because that’s how you create a melody from spoken word – this is actually just harmonizing the spoken word, keeping the spoken word, but the same seeds of the idea. But I think it sounds really cool. I think it’s fascinating to hear the voice in a really familiar way of talking and the familiar speech patterns, but then refracting it through melody and harmony feels like a prism on the words.
I saw that Ableton clip, and it got me thinking about how you conceptualize the relationship between poetry and melody. Like you said, in the video, it’s more about turning words into melody, but with this technique and the album more generally, it seems like you’re drawn to the malleability of spoken word itself; you’re playing with that middle space between spoken word and melody.
Yeah, I think that’s absolutely right. I like that idea of there being this middle space that neither one can quite get at, so when you bring them together, you kind of get both. And that is something in general I was doing more on this record, writing from poems and from pre-existing words. My process with writing lyrics historically has been a lot of stream of consciousness, things just kind of come out, and I’ll edit some of it. But sometimes it’s really impossible to edit whatever came out, and you just end up leaving it, but maybe it’s not quite what you want to say. So I liked having a bit more control over the messaging and just how I wanted to convey it. ‘Velvet Coil’ and ‘Heartwood’ were complete poems that then became songs, and I feel like I was able to explore language in a way that I wouldn’t have been able to if I was singing as I said the words. So, I think you’re right that these ways of using the voice get at different things, and thus, there’s something even exponential that occurs when you bring the two together.
Mother Figures
I thought I was going to be a mother in a very specific way at the start of this record. That year of writing, until I did get pregnant again, was in part a journey to open myself up to other ways of mothering and broaden the definition of mother, because I was denied access to the very specific familiar notion of motherhood. I felt like I was denied. It was like, “Nope. This is not for you.” And then I couldn’t get pregnant again for a while, and it was maddening and heartbreaking. There are so many people who are living in the land of denied access to motherhood, to parenthood, and it can be a deeply painful space to be in.
Part of what I wanted to talk about is broadening the definition of mothering and coming to find how I could exist as a mother even when I wasn’t, physically, a mother yet. I think part of that was a conversation that I had with a good friend of mine where we were talking about the idea that creative collaboration is sort of inherently a mothering space, because when you become a mother, you decentralize yourself as the main figure. You’re subsumed by this other being, and you of open yourself up. You dismantle the ego, and you open yourself up to new energy. And that’s what the creative process is like, also. When you open the doors onto your work and you bring other people in, that’s a form of mothering. In creating this record with Zubin and with all of these players, it felt like a really mothering space. In that way, I felt like I was a mother. I was decentralized as the person who wrote a lot of these songs and my story, and it became less about that and more about what we were creating together. But then I also felt very mothered by the process. It was very nurturing, especially working with Zubin in that little room. It was this very dark, warm, small space. It was really womb-like, honestly.
And then, of course, Mother Earth and Mother Nature became sort of my ultimate mother, and where I came back home and found a lot of guidance and solace and inspiration in nature. I would go for walks almost every day all through the winter. I hate the cold; I absolutely hate the cold, and I forced myself to get outside and walk just to – again, I didn’t want the world to be going on without me. But nature and this land became such a mother to me in that time. Watching my beloved mother-in-law go through this really intense illness, and not know if she was going to survive the year. She’s still with us today, which is incredible. She’s beaten the odds. She still has stage 4 pancreatic cancer, but she is just showing such incredible resilience.
That was another piece that I wanted to touch on – looking at these mother figures in my life. My own mother had just finished a year of chemo for breast cancer. She had a mastectomy, so I’ve got my mother and my mother-in-law going through these illnesses, and then me going through this miscarriage, and then the land going through its own devastation with climate change. Looking at the flora and fauna where I live, and not knowing if it was going to be here when I did become a mother, and would my child know this land? Just looking at these mother figures that were all very wounded and yet so resilient through it all – that was an underpinning of spiritual inspiration. How do I get through this? They were modeling it for me.
And you become a part of it, that lineage. The “I” becomes “we.”
Yes. And thinking about generations and legacy – there was a feeling of history in this album, too. I don’t know whether that’s palpable or not, but I just remember when I wrote that song, ‘Mother Tongue’, I was in Wyoming. The geology out there is so rich, and you feel just surrounded by time; you can see it in all the layers of the rocks. They’re so ancient. I felt just like such a part of this lineage; even if I wasn’t a mother yet, you feel held by what’s come before. And I felt held by all the mothers before me.
Sibylle Baier
She’s one of my favorite artists, but I realize I’ve never actually said her name out loud.
It’s pronounced “Sibylla,” which, I’ll tell you why I know that.
YouTube betrayed me, then, because I looked up the pronunciation – it was one of those “How to pronounce…” videos.
Yup. [laughs] I thought it was “Sibylle” too, but that’s the traditional pronunciation, I think.
What drew you to her music and her story?
That fall when I was writing in 2021, a friend of mine came to visit to take some photos and hang out, and he was the one who played me that record, Colour Green. I think he just played me ‘Forget About’, and then I went and listened to the whole album. But I was just immediately stunned. It’s one of those songs that you hear and you remember exactly where you were. I remember exactly where we were. We were actually driving down my road, and there’s tons of goldenrod everywhere – it’s that time of year, early September. And I was just so struck by the rawness of her singing and the recording. It’s just so of a moment – you put a microphone in a room and forget about it. It felt very bold to record music that way, to release music that way and not dress it up. Here I am making this very produced music, and I was bowled over by how much was conveyed with how few tools.
It was something Zubin and I came back to a lot through recording, the idea of really recording performances as much as possible – not comping and editing together a bunch of takes, but letting things be a performance, letting things have little moments of imperfection. ‘Sunset Hunting’ was a full take of me singing and playing piano. We tracked ‘The Museum’ live with the band, though I did record the vocal after. A lot of the vocals on the record are scratch tracks or demos that never got re-recorded. I talked about this with driving and doing voice memos – capturing the moment – and that got translated to the recording process. I can trace it back to the moment of hearing that first Sibylle Baier song and being like, “This is it. This is everything.”
And then learning about her story, which is, I believe it was her son who found these recordings of hers years and years later and released it. So there was just no ego at all, and that was also just such a beautiful part of the story. How much those songs nurtured me, and how giving she was, ultimately, of herself without even trying. And I know a lot of people feel that way.
In a really magical twist of fate, after my miscarriage – I had this really bad recovery, which we don’t have to go into because it’s a long story. But I just didn’t really get proper care and had a lot of medical complications and sought out other kinds of healers because Western medicine failed me in that experience. One of the people I went to was a friend of my mom’s, who’s a sound healer. She does something called acutonics, which is like moving the body’s energy and vibrating the water in your cells through gongs, chimes, and tuning forks. I had a really amazing session with her that felt really transformative. And it turns out she was married to Sibylle Baier’s son. They’re no longer together, but Sibylle Baier was her mother-in-law.
No way.
I actually just saw this woman the other day because she’s a really good friend of my mom’s, and I told her that I was going to be doing this interview and talking about Sibylle, and she’s like, “Oh, we should go see her! She lives nearby, we should go, and you should tell her how much that record meant to you.” So we’re going to set up a meeting, which is going to be so incredible. I’m talking about going into this time of my life looking for signs and trying to bring the universe closer to me, and… this happened. That felt like a big wink from the universe.
Thich Nhat Hahn
My dad actually studied with Thich Nhat Hahn at Plum Village, his monastery in France. But he’s been this figure in my life. We had a quote of his up on the wall growing up: “You have arrived. You are home.” So his presence sort of seeped down into me as a child and growing up. He passed away the day after my mother-in-law got her cancer diagnosis at the end of January 2022. I remember sitting in this parking lot reading that; the rain was hitting the windshield as I was reading about his passing, and remembering this story my dad had told me about one of his experiences with Thich Nhat Hanh at Plum Village, when he came upon him talking to this group of schoolchildren. He was teaching them these ideas of continuation: there is no birth, there is no death, things just continue on. He’s like, “I’m gonna burn this piece of paper, what happens to it?” And it becomes smoke. The kids are like, “Oh, it became smoke.” And then he’s like, “Yeah, and then the smoke is going to go up into the sky. So if it rains later and the rain falls on you, you could say like, ‘Hello, little piece of paper,’ because you know that that paper became the smoke that became the clouds that became the rain.”
I love that story. It’s such a simple idea, it’s told to school kids, but it contains so many seeds of wisdom. So in that moment when I was reckoning with, “Oh my gosh, this person who I love so deeply is maybe going to leave us in a matter of months,” it was almost like Thich Nhat Hanh’s passing within 24 hours was like… I don’t believe that this was a message for me, but I did take a message from it. The timing of it was pretty remarkable, and it raining in that moment, I was like, even in his passing, he’s giving me his teaching. At that point, I was reading a lot of quotes of his while I was writing, so his words are actually woven into a number of songs on the record. We’re talking about forms becoming interwoven into other things; I can see this direct line of a tiny, tiny piece of his magnificent spirit becoming part of this music.
This interview hs been edited and condensed for clarity and length.
Hinds have shared a new single, ‘Bats’, which serves as a bonus track to their latest album VIVA HINDS. Check it out below.
“We wrote ‘BATS’ the week after watching ANOTHER ROUND (DRUK) in the movies,” the band explained in a press release. “we couldn’t stop thinking about it, especially the last scene where Mad Mikkelsen starts dancing frenetically until he jumps fully dressed to the water. ‘BATS’ is accepting everything is blurry and confusing. in spanish and in english. it’s a dance with your darkest thoughts. a dance with your ugliest demons.”
LISA has dropped a new solo single, ‘Moonlit Floor’. The Blackpink singer debuted the track, which interpolates Sixpence None the Richer’s 1998 hit ‘Kiss Me’, during her headline performance at the Global Citizen Festival in NYC last month. It follows herJune single ‘Rockstar’ and the Rosalía collab ‘New Woman’. Give it a listen below.
