Browsing Tag

RnB Soul

Choice Love delivers a resoundingly soulful apology with “DIFFERENT VIDEO”

Posted on 17 November 2020

Accoladed RnB Soul artist and producer Choice Love released their standout single ‘DIFFERENT VIDEO’ this summer, if you missed it, you also missed out on one of the most resoundingly empathetic singles released in 2020.

My tear ducts never stood a chance against the compassion contained in the consolingly release. ‘I know you hurt, but I’m not to blame’… ‘I’m sorry you’re all alone’… ‘some men help you die, some help you live’… It speaks so sincerely to anyone who has been filled with cynicism and chooses to forgo romanticism for isolated sanctity.

If you don’t feel anything after hit play, there’s a good chance that your soul has departed.

You can check out the official video by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Kay Soul – Silly Love: Empoweringly Evocative Alt RnB  

Posted on 16 November 2020

Most RnB tracks leave you under the impression that love is all about sex and breakups. Kay Soul has obliterated that blind-sighted perception with the release of ‘Silly Love’ which features on her 2020 album ‘In My Mind’.

While plenty of people had fun discussing whether WAP was a feminist track, artist’s such as Kay Soul was cooking up the most empowering track that I’ve heard this year. With the single, the trailblazing artist gently points out that objectification isn’t romance while the amorous instrumentals create a hazily seductive atmosphere for her wisdom to fall into.

At the risk of fangirling, I love her. I utterly adore her for reflecting the frustrations I’ve felt about the hyper-sexualisation of culture back at me with more poignancy and feeling than I could ever muster. Every woman needs this track on their playlists.

You can check out Kay Soul’s empoweringly evocative single Silly Love for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

JEF P – Pull Up: An Ardently Intoxicating Jazz Infusion

Posted on 30 October 2020

If you think that the artwork to JEF P’s single Pull Up is archaic, just wait until you hear the ardently intoxicating levels of old-school soul in the RnB track.

Pull Up resonates as more than music, you can tell that the Washington-based artist’s audiophilic tendencies heavily influenced the soundscape, but there’s sticky-sweet meta poetry breathing through the melodic verses which swing in perfect tempo with the Jazz-laden instrumentals.

I don’t bound the term ‘masterful’ around lightly, but with Pull Up, it’s impossible to find a more apt adjective for the dreamy, hazy, contemporary vibes.

Pull Up is available to stream via all major platforms through this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

YXL AYO takes the title back from Eilish with his RnB hit “Bad Guy”

Posted on 15 October 2020

Billie Eilish certainly didn’t claim ‘Bad Guy’ as a title, but she made it hard for any other artists to make it their own. Up and coming RnB artist YXL AYO soulfully succeeded with their 2020 release.

Bad Guy is a return to form for YXL AYO. But this time, with producer Super Beats on side, he’s cooked up a melodic aural storm which the airwaves simply can’t ignore.

The transfixing grooving rhythms easily distinguish themselves as superior from the rest while YXL AYO will remind you why you fell in love with RnB in the first place with their vocals; the unfiltered and indulgent romanticism which you’d be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.

You can check out the evocatively cinematic official music video to YXL AYO’s single Bad Guy for yourselves by heading over to Vimeo.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Omari lays down the easy melodic grooves in her debut single “Gameboy”

Posted on 28 August 2020

Many RnB artists like to play it safe with their lyricism and end up saying what has been said a thousand times before. Refreshingly, Melbourne artist Omari poured plenty of bold sentiments on the airwaves with her debut single “Gameboy”.

The Indie RnB Pop single has an engaging narrative lyrical style through which Omari assassinates the character of the unworthy waster which inspired Gameboy. Hearing the realisation of Omari’s self-worth in the single which packs in sublimely melodic grooves becomes an empowering aural experience. I can only imagine what it felt like to write it.

Even though you’ll hear plenty of the roots of Soul and RnB within Gameboy, there’s no understating the fresh evocative appeal behind the production. Despite the RnB vibe, it’s safe to say fans of Kate Nash and Florence and the Machine will quickly become enamoured by Omari’s stunning beyond definition vocals.

You can check out Omari’s debut for yourselves by heading over to Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Jamal Plummer has revived the smooth 90s RnB style with “Higher”

Posted on 28 August 2020

Jamal Plummer has revived the smooth 90s RnB-style with their standout single “Higher”. If your playlists are lacking in inspirational urban aural gems, there’s plenty of resolving optimistic soul found in the radio-ready release.

The amorously accordant single captures that all too rare feeling of absolute contentment. Not just contentment within a romantic relationship but harnessing that passion and pouring it into every area of your life. If Higher doesn’t compel you to approach life with a rejuvenated sense of purpose and ambition, I don’t know what will.

You can check out Jamal Plummer’s single Higher for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

RnB artist Aliza Li takes us right back to the Old School with “7th Grade Complex”

Posted on 27 August 2020

Aliza Li has breezed onto the airwaves with her fresh new NeoSoul drop 7th Grade Complex featuring Dessy. Some people may leave high school behind, but the mentality is too hard for some to shake. Aliza Li’s new track perfectly captures the frustration which manifests when dealing with a lack of maturity.

Aliza Li’s soulfully sumptuous stripped-back feat of NeoSoul offers warm glistering tones, blissfully resolving vocals and a compelling lyrical narrative which will keep you hooked from the first verse right up to the last. Dessy’s vocals perfectly round off the track, adding a little vocal bite to the smooth accordance which Aliza Li easily delivers with her notable talent.

You can check out 7th Grade Complex for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

London-based RnB artist Eleazar has made a soulfully empowering debut with “Karma”

Posted on 26 August 2020

If there is anything sweeter than karmic justice, it’s breaking RnB artist Eleazar’s 2020 debut single “Karma”.

The London-based artist ensured that there was a modernistic melodic feel to the light, warm and dexterous soundscape while making sure that she paid ode to the roots of Soul. The deeply narrative lyrics serve up plenty of relatable sentiments for anyone who has ever experienced someone rolling into your life as a hot mess, treated you like dirt and expected you to fix them. The verses run without a hint of negative emotion, just pure faith in Karma and empowered conviction. It’s a soulful invitation to let go of the anger and trust the process of karmic justice.

You can check out Eleazar’s single Karma for yourselves via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Shxnnon invites you to get in touch with your emotions with “Feelings”

Posted on 23 August 2020

If you’re a fan of RnB Soul classics but wish they were more fitting for contemporary and confusing times, hit play on breaking artist Shxnnon’s recently released single “Feelings”.

With her 5th single, Shxnnon ensured that Feelings pertained the heart-warmingly resolving effects of classic Soul while offering a colossal amount of stylistic appeal.

Switching between synth notes which are doused with lush reverb and delicately intricate piano keys allowed the past and future of Soul to converge in the deeply evocative hit which gives you a candid view into Shxnnon’s frustration, optimism and passion. It practically begs for repeat attention through sheer authenticity.

Feelings is available to stream on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Damian Eskridge – “Somebody Else”: Soulful West-Coast R&B

Posted on 21 August 2020

Damien ‘the artist formally known as Prmise’ Eskridge’s soulful take on West-Coast R&B in Somebody Else tells the story of a lyin’ and cheatin’ behind-closed-doors affair – “You can be my mistress, baby/ I can be your Mister”. It’s got some groove and melody behind the unapologetically sexual lyrics, the low-down sultry vocals of collaborator Nijahe (“I can say I’m at the movies/you can say you’re at the mall”) adding grit and grind counterpoint to Eskridge’s more silky-smooth delivery.

There’s plenty of space in the track, a little high-end boost giving clarity to the vocals, T-Pain style, between some nice minimalist 808-style hi-hats and handclaps, and yeah, it’s chilled and laid-back, dirty and seductive all at once; pretty much perfect old-school R&B.

You can hear ‘Somebody Else” here.

Review by Alex Holmes