On his own website, Zayn describes konnakol as “the act of creating percussive sounds with one’s voice”.
The technique is used in South Indian Carnatic – or classical – music, and involves repeating certain syllables and phrases to create a drum-like sound.
Zayn, who’s from Bradford, says Konnakal is his “most culturally inspired project to date” – but it’s not the first time he’s featured South Asian influences in his music.
He sang in Urdu on Flower, a 104-second folk track on his debut 2016 album, and fans went wild in 2024 when he provided vocals on a collab with Pakistani band Aur.
The singer also played some unreleased material – which included lyrics in Urdu – at his recent Las Vegas residency.
Some have also pointed out that Konnakol’s album art, showing half of Zayn’s face merged with a snow leopard’s, is also a symbol that links back to South Asian mythology.
But fans will have to wait until 17 April to find out if the album includes any of the konnakol vocal percussion it’s named after.