It’s Throwback Thursday on Asteria Records, and this week we’re heading back to 2018 for “2 Immortal Eyz (To Immortalize)”, Razteria’s love letter to the muse, with West African kora, Andean panpipes and live drums from the Bay Area.
The song
Renée dedicated this song “to all of our Muses, which both devour and immortalize as they push us to create.” It opens with “I want to sit in the Sun and write / A song for you,” and the chorus turns that obsession into a promise: “You inspire me / I’ll immortalize this song in Time.” By the last chorus the muse is the one doing the consuming (“You devour me”), and the song itself is what’s left behind.
Renée Asteria Peñaloza wrote the music and lyrics. She arranged, produced, recorded and mixed the track at Truffula Oak Studio, her former studio in El Sobrante, and played vocals, guitar, bass, synths and drum samples herself. Jayme Arredondo added live drums, Yacouba Diarra played kora, Waddell Bell played bass on the original “To Immortalize,” and Israel Donaire’s toyos were recorded at the Los Kjarkas studio in Cochabamba, Bolivia. The result moves slowly at 80 BPM in G minor, blending ambient electronics with R&B swing. Soundsphere magazine called it a “touching, emotive alternative pop song that works on all the senses” (read more on razteria.com).
The single came out on February 20, 2018, the first of a series of singles Razteria released on the 20th of each month that year. It later became part of the compilation album Infinity, and there’s also an instrumental version. The official music video was shot in 2017 and released on June 20, 2019, filmed and directed by Lauren Younglove.
Listen on Bandcamp, Spotify or SoundCloud, or watch the official music video below.
The music videos
“2 Immortal Eyz (To Immortalize)” video credits: filmed and directed by Lauren Younglove. Shot in 2017, released June 20, 2019. Music, lyrics, performance, arrangement, production, recording and mix by Renée Asteria Peñaloza (Razteria); live drums by Jayme Arredondo; kora by Yacouba Diarra; bass by Waddell Bell; mastered by Justin Weis at Trakworx Studios.
From “To Immortalize” to “Inspire Me”
“2 Immortal Eyz” didn’t stop with Infinity. The song grew into “Inspire Me,” released by Renée as Renay on the album Pure Love (February 21, 2020). It keeps the same opening (“I sit in the Sun and write / A song for you”) and the “You inspire me (eh) / I immortalize” hook, but trades the slow 80 BPM ambient R&B for 162 BPM drum and bass and electro, still in G minor. Renée Asteria Peñaloza composed it, wrote the lyrics and music, and performed, arranged, edited and engineered the vocals; Joseph Pepe and Zack Burke of BTWN Music co-produced, arranged and mixed it; and it was mastered by Justin Weis at Trakworx Studios in South San Francisco. Listen on Bandcamp or Spotify.
“Inspire Me” video credits: After Thought Media in association with Asteria Records (video); BTWN Music and Asteria Records (music). Film by Emre Mirza (director, producer and editor). Executive producer: Renée Asteria Peñaloza. Co-producers: Colin Elves and Renée Asteria Peñaloza. Director of photography and colorist: Colin Elves (the video’s YouTube description also credits Shane Bartley as colorist). Assistant producer: Elsa Triquet Rey. Production assistant: Francisco Perez Mazon. Stylist: Raki Fernandez. Gaffer: Alex De Pew. Camera operator and behind-the-scenes videographer: Tim Haber. Make-up: Mby Randrianantenaina. Associate producers: Kerim Knight and Shahzad Uhlmann. Dancers: Berit and Anna Froysland. Choreography: Anna and Berit Einemo Froysland with Renée Asteria Peñaloza. Behind-the-scenes photos: Tim Haber; press photos: Kerim Knight. See how it was made in The Making of Wanna Share & Inspire Me and the Inspire Me behind-the-scenes video.
“Inspire Me” live video credits: In 2022 Razteria also released a live version of “Inspire Me” with Dave Shul (guitar), Kimiko Joy (vocals) and Manas Itene (percussion); Razteria sang, played guitar and mixed the audio. Videographer and editor: Alex Zajicek; video recording assistant: Josh Petersen.
The people behind it
Waddell Bell: bass
Waddell plays bass in the Bay Area reggae band Fyah Squad. The band has stayed busy in 2026: they played lunchtime shows in downtown San Francisco with People in Plazas this summer, and in September they appeared as Junior Toots and the Fyah Squad Band in Healdsburg. Waddell is also on many other Razteria recordings, from Maz Raz to “Surrender.”
Justin Weis: mastering
Justin mastered both “2 Immortal Eyz” and “Inspire Me” at Trakworx Studios, the mastering and recording studio he runs in South San Francisco. Follow Trakworx on Instagram.
James Ward: mix feedback
Renée thanked James for his “invaluable mix feedback” on this song. James is the lead engineer at Live Oak Studio in Berkeley, where he has worked for more than 15 years, running and editing sessions for artists across many styles.
Drums, kora, toyos and more
Big thanks to Jayme Arredondo on live drums; Jayme is a Bay Area reggae drummer whose credits include Soul Majestic and Luv Fyah. Thanks to Yacouba Diarra on kora. He’s a Mixto Records artist who has played with Afrolicious, Rob Garza of Thievery Corporation and Dogon Lights (follow him on Instagram). Thanks also to Israel Donaire on toyos in Cochabamba, to Guido Otegui and Selecta Edwise for their mix feedback, and to Lauren Younglove for the video.
Thanks for digging through the vault with us. Put on “2 Immortal Eyz,” write something for your own muse, and we’ll see you next Thursday with another throwback.
