Based in Tavira, Portugal, Lena Younes is not your typical singer-songwriter. Her artistry is deeply intertwined with her extensive experience as a yoga teacher and breathwork practitioner, disciplines she has dedicated over a decade to mastering. Her journey into music isn’t just about melodies and lyrics, it’s about healing, connection, and transformation.
Lena brings an extraordinary presence to her work, and her performances are often described as immersive and hauntingly beautiful, taking listeners on a voyage into the heart. Her voice, unfiltered and rich with emotion, becomes a vehicle for exploring the depths of the human experience. Lena’s philosophy views the voice as an ancient remedy, a bridge to healing and self-expression. It was through the powerful gateway of conscious connected breathwork that she reignited her songwriting, songs began flowing after a creative silence, catalyzed by the breath itself. That flow hasn’t stopped since.
Released on May 15th, 2025, Lena Younes’ latest album “Ways of the Dreamer” is a luminous tapestry of sound, vulnerability, and inner truth. This collection of nine original songs spans six years of personal transformation, tracing the artist’s journey through motherhood, grief, and rebirth. It’s more than an album, it’s a meditation in motion. Each track is a testament to the therapeutic power of breath and voice. From the opening note, Lena pulls the listener into an intimate space, where raw emotion and reflective stillness coexist. The most striking aspect of this album is its sincerity. Lena’s vocals are not only technically captivating but emotionally disarming, her voice doesn’t perform; it reveals. There’s a softness that’s never weak, a strength that’s tender, and a kind of grounded vulnerability that invites you to lower your defenses and just feel.
Ways Of The Dreamer Album Track List:
Pray:
The opening track of Lena Younes’ debut album “Ways of the Dreamer”, titled “Pray,” is a tender invocation that immediately pulls the listener into the emotional core of her work. With a hauntingly simple introduction, the song unfolds gently, creating an atmosphere of quiet introspection. As the arrangement gradually builds, orchestral strings and delicate percussion enrich the soundscape, adding layers of emotional complexity without ever overwhelming the song’s intimate essence. It’s a careful balancing act, each element serves the mood, not the other way around, drawing listeners into a contemplative state that mirrors Lena’s own journey of vulnerability and healing.
Lena’s vocal performance on “Pray” is nothing short of breathtaking. She sings with raw sincerity, her voice trembling with both fragility and strength, like someone whispering a truth they’ve carried too long in silence. The lyrics speak to the longing for grounding, for sanctuary in uncertain times, capturing the universal ache of searching for a place or a feeling that feels like home. Her voice floats gently over the instrumentation, not merely as a melody but as a guiding presence through the emotional landscape of the song.
Emotionally, “Pray” sets the perfect tone for the rest of the album. The song’s calm, flowing energy feels like a chilly breeze on a still night, cooling, clarifying, and surprisingly comforting. It offers a kind of sonic shelter, a soft place to land when the world feels too loud or uncertain. As a first impression, “Pray” not only showcases Lena Younes’ skill as a songwriter and vocalist but also establishes the emotional depth and spiritual intention that define “Ways of the Dreamer”. It’s a powerful entry point into an album that promises and delivers profound introspection and soulful connection.
Ways of the Dreamer:
The sixth and titular track, “Ways of the Dreamer,” stands as the emotional and thematic centerpiece of Lena Younes’ latest album. Inspired by the wide, wonder-filled eyes of her newborn daughter, the song radiates a tender reverence for life’s quiet miracles. From the very first note, listeners are immersed in a rich blend of acoustic and orchestral textures that form a soundscape both soothing and expansive. This musical arrangement serves as a cradle for Lena’s vocals.
Lena’s vocal delivery on this track is profoundly emotive, revealing the deep well of love, awe, and vulnerability that accompanies motherhood and personal transformation. Her sincerity is unmistakable; every phrase feels lived-in and honest, resonating with a kind of raw grace that touches the heart. There’s a sense that she’s not merely singing but communing, expressing something sacred, something known not just through words but through the body and soul. The way her voice intertwines with the music creates a seamless and immersive experience, as if the listener is being invited to sit beside her in quiet reflection.
Ambient and contemplative in its overall vibe, “Ways of the Dreamer” flows like a gentle stream, steady, calm, and full of quiet power. The energy of the song is captivating yet understated, inviting listeners to slow down, breathe deeper, and reconnect with a sense of wonder. It encapsulates the core of Lena’s artistic vision: to create music that heals, grounds, and awakens. As the namesake of the album, the track beautifully captures the essence of the entire project, acting as both anchor and beacon. It’s a song that lingers long after it ends, echoing like a soft prayer in the background of one’s thoughts
My Daughter:
“My Daughter” is one of the most intimate and emotionally resonant tracks on “Ways of the Dreamer”, offering a moving tribute to familial love and intergenerational connection. Co-written and performed by Lena Younes and her father, Maged Younes, the song radiates warmth and tenderness from beginning to end. The simplicity of the instrumentation allows the focus to remain on their beautifully blended vocals, which carry the weight of both experience and affection. It’s a rare and touching collaboration that feels less like a performance and more like a deeply personal conversation set to music.
The vocal interplay between Lena and her father is at the heart of the track’s magic. Their voices, though distinct, intertwine with a quiet synchronicity that reflects their shared bond and mutual respect. Lena’s soft, nurturing tone complements her father’s grounded presence, creating a dialogue that speaks to both guidance and gratitude. This blend of male and female vocals adds emotional depth and dimension, enhancing the song’s message of legacy, love, and the wisdom passed from one generation to the next. There’s an undeniable sincerity in their delivery that makes the track feel both universal and deeply personal.
With its gentle energy and polished production, “My Daughter” stands out as a moment of calm reflection within the album. The song doesn’t just express love, it embodies it, inviting listeners into a sacred familial space filled with warmth and understanding. The peaceful ambiance and heartfelt lyricism make it a memorable listen, not just for its musical quality but for the emotional honesty it conveys. In celebrating the intergenerational bond, Lena and her father have created a piece that resonates far beyond its runtime, leaving a lasting impression of love, heritage, and shared humanity.
Presence:
“Presence” is the profoundly emotional lead track on “Ways of the Dreamer”, setting the tone for the album with its quiet intensity and heartfelt sincerity. As a tribute to Lena Younes’ late mother who passed away unexpectedly just before Lena’s daughter’s first birthday, the song carries an emotional weight that is both deeply personal and universally resonant. Lena’s vocals are tender and soulful, capturing the rawness of grief and the lingering echoes of love. The minimalist instrumentation serves as a delicate frame, allowing her voice and message to remain front and center, amplifying the sense of vulnerability and reverence in every note.
What makes “Presence” so moving is not just its expression of loss, but its meditation on unseen connections, those threads of ancestry and memory that link generations, even in absence. Lena reflects on the parallel between her own childhood without a mother and the life her daughter will now lead, drawing strength from the invisible legacies that live on in gestures, smiles, and spirit. The song becomes a vessel for remembrance and healing, inviting listeners into a space where grief is not only acknowledged but gently transformed into love and understanding. Lena’s ability to articulate these emotions through music speaks volumes about her depth as a songwriter and her capacity to connect with others through shared human experience.
With its gentle energy and contemplative atmosphere, “Presence” serves as a graceful entry point into the album’s larger themes of healing, motherhood, and ancestral connection. It’s a track that doesn’t demand attention but instead quietly draws the listener in, wrapping them in a cocoon of reflection and empathy. As the lead song on “Ways of the Dreamer”, “Presence” introduces Lena’s artistic voice with poignancy and purpose, embodying the transformative power of music to honor the past, hold space for grief, and celebrate the bonds that remain even when someone is no longer physically here.
Produced remotely by Sebastian Brice in Frome, UK, and recorded in the remarkably personal setting of her father’s wardrobe in Tavira, Portugal, the album’s sound is polished yet intimate. Acoustic textures blend seamlessly with orchestral flourishes, creating a sonic landscape that feels both expansive and close. Each track is a new terrain, yet all feel connected through Lena’s consistent thematic focus on healing, ancestral roots, and emotional awakening. Songs unfold with a deliberate pace, allowing room for reflection and emotional resonance. The arrangements never overwhelm; instead, they hold space for Lena’s voice to breathe; literally and metaphorically. This is music that feels alive, with production that prioritizes clarity and space. The result is a listening experience that is not only beautiful but meditative.
What makes “Ways of the Dreamer” especially compelling is its universality. While rooted in Lena’s personal journey, the themes she explores; loss, connection, motherhood, and inner awakening, are deeply relatable. Her intention to create music as a journey into our emotional landscape is realized with astonishing clarity. This is an album that doesn’t just entertain; it invites you to reflect, release, and perhaps even heal. In tandem with the album, Lena plans to release a companion book featuring lyrics, poetry, and reflections, a natural extension of her holistic approach to creativity. With “Ways of the Dreamer”, Lena Younes has not only given us a remarkable debut but also a heartfelt offering of peace, presence, and profound connection. This is an album to sit with, to breathe through, and to return to. Don’t miss the chance to experience it for yourself.
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