Browsing Tag

gospel

Darius Marquis weaved RnB, Retro-Pop & Gospel into a Folklore Serenade with ‘Fairytales’

Posted on 15 April 2024

Like every good folk tale, Darius Marquis’ standout single, Fairytales, alters the mind through expansions of the imagination. The slick with soul and swathed with experimentation release exists between the borders of genres, exploring untrodden intersections of RnB, retro pop and gospel, allowing Fairytales to unravel as an exploratively sincere extension of candour.

Fairytales nuancedly exposits how stories shape our perceptions of the world while we’re too innocent to experience the unfair brutality of it only for those illusions to be shattered, one shot to the heart at a time. The Houston-based artist and producer charted these emotional themes with folk-esque eloquent ease, allowing the poetic fragments of introspection to flow throughout the hazy instrumental currents with melodious ease. With gospel infused into the grooves, the melodies endlessly ascend beneath Darius Marquis’ honeyed harmonies which bring luminescence to the most bitter-sweet facets of life.

If there was as much justice in the world as fairytales would have us believe, Marquis would be a #1 phenomenon.

Stream Fairytales on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Issara can make any house a ‘Home’ with the soul in her latest single

Posted on 3 December 2023

With all the grace and beguile of a chanteuse fused with a retro soul aesthetic, the up-and-coming singer-songwriter Issara can make any house a ‘Home’ with her latest single, which offers a sanctuary of sound for anyone in search of solace.

By lyrically painting a protagonist who tends to the universal yet unseen needs that we all silently crave, Issara burned bright in the consoling warmth of the vignette of unconditional affection, which spins a narrative with threads of deep-rooted connection and understanding.

Home is a homage to the concept that home transcends physical spaces, echoing Issara’s journey across continents, and encapsulating the essence that home is indeed where the heart resides.

The production is steeped in a lush retro aesthetic, where the luminous timbres of the organ interlace with Issara’s vocals to create an ambience that is both comforting and soul-stirring. The hues of gospel spilling from the arrangement are a nod to her American church roots, bringing forth a nostalgic yet timeless quality that grips the listener’s soul. This track is not just heard; it’s felt, ensuring that by the outro, one’s soul is thoroughly sated.

With an ability to blend soul, pop, rock, gospel, French yéyé, and Thai funk, Issara has created a sound that is as diverse as her heritage. The song is a promise of what is to come from her upcoming debut album ‘222’, set for release on the befitting date of February 22, 2024.

As a mother of two and a beacon for late bloomers in the arts, Issara’s voice transcends mere melody to become a vessel of inspiration, encouraging others to find their place of belonging, their ‘home’, in whatever form it may take.

Home was officially released on November 17; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Remilekun funked up gospel in her euphorically liberating single, Put Your Weights Down

Posted on 21 November 2023

The one and only luminary, Remilekun, is back on our radar with the momentously uplifting single, Put Your Weights Down, and once again, her unfaltering zeal has driven us to evocative euphoria.

Definitively proving that gospel doesn’t need to adhere to any genre, Put Your Weights Down put synthy funk and disco rhythms behind the ultimate good vibe anthem, which is destined to resonate with everyone. The universally infectious track hits every conceivable mark as it compels you to move to the beat and unshackle yourself from what is holding you back and down.

This is far from the first time that we’ve found reverence for the soulful force, but this new single which captures the electricity of a live performance reached the pinnacle of mindful exhilaration. The essential playlist staple will lift any mood as it encapsulates the artist’s journey from singing covers to leading a ninety-member choir. It mirrors the impact of her inspirational and transformational leadership – get behind her; you won’t regret it.

Raised by a single mother who instilled in her resilience and creativity, Remilekun’s music is imbued with the courage to overcome life’s storms. Put Your Weights Down is not just a song; it’s a narrative of perseverance and a beacon for anyone looking to rise above their circumstances. It’s Remilekun’s musical prowess and heartening background that make this track—and her—an essential presence in the landscape of gospel and inspirational music. I can’t help but adore her.

Put Your Weights Down was officially released on November 11; check it out on Spotify and YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Folarin & Keziah harmonised chapter and verse on the presence and power of God with their 2023 EP, Greatest

Posted on 17 November 2023

On November 1st, the award-winning Canadian worship music duo Folarin & Keziah delivered their ‘Greatest’ EP, which stands as a testament to their mission of forging a cutting-edge intersection across the convergence of Christian and contemporary gospel genres.

By weaving cinematically striking elements of rock, RnB, soul, funk, blues, and pop around the impassionedly upraising lyricism which taps into the salvation of faith and emanates the assurance of unfaltering hope, Folarin & Keziah orchestrated one of the most seminal devotional records of the decade.

If you’re looking to be liberated from fear and to vanquish semblances of incertitude, just hit play on the duo which has been repetitively celebrated by the Gospel Music Association and hear them harmonise on their strident reverence for the presence and power of God.

Stream the Greatest EP on Spotify or purchase the 6-track release via Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Dom the Composer is Sleepwalking with Streetlights in his honeyed and hymnal soul single

Posted on 13 October 2023

Since releasing his debut single in 2019, Dom the Composer has summoned his signature sound through rhythmic reverence, a never-ending proclivity towards blues and the determination to lavish even his most pensive singles with soul.

His latest single, Sleepwalking with Streetlights, created in collaboration with Novian Wright proves his time with the All Saints Choir of Men and Boys in Ashmont didn’t go to waste. His hymnal and honeyed vocal register instantly arrests the soul as the bluesy melodies work their magic on your rhythmic pulses before Novian Wright brings a sense of dynamism with his rap bars that effortlessly complement the MA-hailing Haitian-American singer-songwriter’s intoxicating timbre.

Sleepwalking with Streetlights is perfect for those late nights when your demons drive you to the point of distraction, retrospective regret wracks you with the compulsion for action and there is no appeasing your restlessly listless mind. It is a sublime testament to an artist who is clear in his determination to let trends pass him by and stay on his own euphonically enlightened path of delivering uninhibited vulnerability and originality.

Sleepwalking with Streetlights was officially released on September 28; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Emissary of Impassioned Nostalgia, Donnell Isaac Has Come Through with His Latest RnB Single, Through Love

Posted on 13 September 2023

If your 80s & 90s RnB playlists need a fresh kick of soul, the latest single, Through Love, from the emissary of impassioned nostalgia, Donnell Isaac, will deliver a potent shot of sweet sensuality.

The Portsmouth, Virginia-hailing singer-songwriter and composer allowed RnB fans to delve far deeper than Frank Ocean hits with the staunchly traditionalist track that reaches the epitome of cinematic soul.

Through Love, which explores the all-consuming gratitude love evokes, pays an ode to the celestial capacity of true love; in an era of superficial connection, the single is a testament to the rewards for romantic vulnerability. Between his Gospel-grown vocal lines and the arresting electric guitar solo towards the outro, Through Love efficaciously leaves the senses alight.

Through Love dropped on September 8th; stream it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Essilfie took gospel out of the church with her lush trap hit, Prayed Up

Posted on 13 August 2023

Since making her debut, the Ghanaian soul and R&B singer-songwriter, Essilfie, has established herself as one of the most dynamic artists in the game. With no genre off the table, anticipating her next move is impossible, but it is always effortless to get in the groove of her latest releases; take her latest trap and hip-hop-infused hit, Prayed Up as the perfect example.

The gritty conviction in her spoken-word rap bars is only matched by the lush sultry appeal of the reverb that spills from the instrumentals in the single that breaks the monocultural could for starters and obliterates genre and geographical boundaries for a triadic triumphant exhibition of authenticity.

As luxe as a Jay Z hip-hop production, as soulful as a Sade single, and as introspective as, well, she set her own bar here, the single that speaks through an alter-ego to traverse themes of resilience and faith is one to meditate on.

Check out Prayed Up on all major streaming platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Paid My Bills: Im Ty moves up from the slim choices on the lyrically conscious Good Guy Gold

Posted on 24 July 2023

With a church organ start to get the hands raised up into the sky, Im Ty beats all challenges like the true professional he is and shall blow the roof off on the page-turning Good Guy Gold.

Im Ty is an Oxon Hill, Maryland-based indie alternative artist who loves to motivate others with a heart-healing blend of hip-hop and gospel.

Taking us for an exhilarating ride into the sunset of life, Im Ty is quite simply excellent and roars into life with a rather top-notch performance for the ages. This is exceptional stuff and will be certainly memorable for anyone previously unfamiliar with this notable emcee.

Good Guy Gold from Maryland-based artist Im Ty is one of the more real releases likely to be heard in 2023. This is raw to the core but doesn’t drop anything unnecessary, instead taking us into a much more illuminating place.

There is so much to take us forward instead of back on this monumental track, with a delightfully well-written flow to tip the cap off.

Hear more on her Spotify.

Check out the IG for more info.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Megan Lynette paved the path to resilient redemption in her debut single, Broken

Posted on 22 July 2023

With her debut single, Broken, the Houston-born-and-raised contemporary Christian & gospel singer, songwriter and soulstress Megan Lynette helped her audience to find their missing pieces on the route to resilience and redemption.

Rather than shying away from the most painful facets of the human condition, the recording artist acts as the guiding light away from them by allowing her lyrics to traverse the themes of joy, struggle, healing, hope, and perseverance.

With vocal lines that drench the synthpop soundscape with stylish gospel-esque soul, Broken is an all-consumingly compassionate release that is ardently enlightening enough to resonate with anyone caught in the crosshairs of visceral pain, tragedy and confusion.

With her sophomore single, Only Hope, set for release in 2023, it is well worth following Megan Lynette’s career as it becomes illustrious in the coming months.

Broken is available to stream on Spotify.

Death can’t touch me now: John Leckenby sings with great faith on the Christian anthem, Promise

Posted on 19 July 2023

Knowing that his life is safe now despite the traumas of the world, John Leckenby is covered by the blood of Christ and has found his purpose now on the hugely motivating new single, Promise.

John Leckenby is a Fresno, California-based indie Gospel artist who shows us that he acknowledges the resurrection and sings with such love and care.

“It’s like an anthem for my life,” said Leckenby. “It’s about the one promise that can sustain us in our lives, and that is the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

Promise from Fresno-based worship leader and songwriter John Leckenby is a stunning song which shall help many find welcome warmth on a cold planet. There is so much drive and honesty here which is so heartening to see as we’re treated to a delightful soundtrack, by an artist who guides us into his current mindset.

Showing us the way to living a meaningful existence, this is the perfect song for anyone who wants to believe again.

If love is all that you need to live happier, surely belief helps fuse everything together.

Listen up on Spotify.

Find out more on IG.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen