WEEKLY FLOW: VOLUME VI

Remember how I was just saying how committed I was to seeing my artists in concert this year? Well, keep me in your thoughts and prayers through this difficult time. Childish Gambino fans, unpack your bags because we AREN’T GOING! Not yet, anyways, as the rest of his North American tour has been postponed. I’ve never experienced this before, but I remember seeing people who had Drake tickets go through this same thing… I now feel their pain. I hope I don’t have to wait a million years for this tour to be resumed, but I do hope he is ok and taking care of himself!

ALBUMS

While We Wait 2

‘While We Wait 2’ is another 10/10 project from Kehlani. Upon first listen, I knew this was a solid album and that I would find many songs landing in my rotation. The fact that this is the second project Kehlani has released this year is crazy, but I’m glad they did. I really enjoyed the original ‘While We Wait’ album, so this definitely feels like a more mature continuation, yet also feels true to Kehlani’s sound from ‘SweetSexySavage’ and ‘It Was Good Until It Wasn’t.’

1. Clothes Off (feat. kwn)

Easily my top fav from this album. It has such a classic R&B sound, and even is reminiscent of Teyana Taylor’s sound from K.T.S.E. I haven’t heard of kwn before this song, but I really enjoy their sound too. At some points I thought this was Tory Lanez as the feature (thankfully it’s not, full tea full shade).

2. S.I.N.G.L.E

I personally don’t relate to these lyrics rn, but at one point in my life I definitely did. The vocals are giving, the bass is fabulous, the beat is even better. 10/10 song and reminds me of Kehlani’s SweetSexySavage era.

3. Know Better (feat. Lil’ Mo & Vince Staples)

Clothes Off, S.I.N.G.L.E, to Know Better is a crazy 3 track run. These 3 tracks are very important to me! The transition from S.I.N.G.L.E into this song is top tier. It’s wavy, it’s groovy. Vince Staples is a perfect feature for this beat. No notes!

Bando Stone and The New World

As I express my pain and sorrow about Childish Gambino’s tour being postponed, I realized that I never shared my thoughts on his album that I literally purchased tickets to go see live! haha! so let’s get into that.

By no means would I consider myself a big Childish Gambino stan. There are some OG songs that I really enjoyed in college, and I still stream “Me and Your Mama” and “Redbone” on occasion. If I’m honest, I really wanted to see Willow in person and alas, she was supposed to be opening for him. I had enough faith that I could enjoy his album to justify this purchase. I am glad I purchased tickets for his concert because I actually really enjoy this project! For those who are unfamiliar or haven’t heard, this is his final album as Childish Gambino, which is kinda a big deal but also not really. If you’re curious as to why he is leaving this name behind, there are plenty of articles covering it, but essentially he just decided he didn’t need it anymore. Growth!

Overall opinions on this project are positive. There are a decent amount of features on here ranging in genre to appeal to varying listeners, including myself. Amaarae makes an appearance on more than one track which is fantastic news for us Amaarae stans!!! I hope this will be great visibility for her and that other artists will be asking her to jump on a track together. My only gripe with this album is that it is an hour long. As I’ve become a full album listener, this really tests my patience at some points in the track list and I really have to just skip through songs I don’t care for. Sue me!

1. Lithonia

Lithonia was the initial single released from this album, and boy was that a very strong start. I’ll admit I was a bit nervous and unsure about what to expect from this album, but this single set the tone. Listening to this made me understand why Willow was planned to be his opener. Definitely more rock & alt coded, which is what I particularly enjoy about Willow’s music. I’ve listened to this song many a times and find myself banging my head throughout. Good song.

2. Talk My Shit (feat. Amaarae & Flo Milli)

No one should be surprised to see this song land in my favorites from this album. Two boss ass bitches on this track, it’s destined to be GOAT’d in MY world. This song actually reminds me of old Childish Gambino a bit from 2013. I don’t personally find the lyrics to be very feminist, but I still find a way to enjoy it! The lyric, “she said baby what’s a yacht? I said a kind of boat” is one of my favorite lyrics it seriously gets stuck in my head. It must be the delivery or something because it’s not even that revolutionary of a bar. Amaarae’s verse on this is sooo wavy and proves she’s valid even on a track where she has to rap. We love a versatile woman! Flo Milli’s verse is good too, I just wish it was a bit longer.

3. Real Love

This didn’t catch my attention on first listen, but as I’ve gone back and given a chance to other songs on this album, this one made the short list. I definitely enjoy the nostalgic angsty pop vibe that he used here. It’s cute! I like it!

4. In The Night (feat. Jorja Smith & Amaarae)

If you ever need to make conversation with someone about this album or about Childish Gambino, bring up this song. I think this is the most popular song on the album aside from Lithonia. My queen Jorja Smith sounds fabulous on this. Real ones know that Jorja is the female version of Ty Dolla $ign when it comes to features – she doesn’t miss. Amaarae brings a certain vibe of wlw to each song that she’s on and I think that’s one of the many reasons why I fw her so heavy. She has a shorter verse on this song, but it’s really good. Listen to it!!!

5. Can You Feel Me (feat. Legend)

Now this right here? My favorite song on the album. I wouldn’t be surprised if this creeps it way into my most listened to songs list at the end of the year. The feature on this is Donald Glover’s son and he ate. The lyrics on this song are real & very appropriate for a father/son collab track. The beat on this is simple, but stands out to me and is very pleasing to listen to. The low note adlibs in this song remind me of the Lion King or a musical ensemble soundtrack. A perfect transition into the back half of the album and a necessary tone shift into the track immediately following this one.

This is a musician who cares about musicality and the details! Well done.

Alligator Bites Never Heal

I’m impatiently waiting for Doechii to takeoff and have her moment in the limelight. Doechii has had her finger on the pulse the past 2-3 years back to back. I desperately want the rap game to shift towards appreciating her more instead of focusing so much on energy on, let’s say, Ice Spice and Latto. Doechii is so deep in her own lane that I think it makes it more difficult for her to fully be accepted and digested in the mainstream. I don’t have a problem with the lane she’s in so I’m gonna stream regardless. Her sound is original, she’s light-hearted in her music, but also able to be real af in her lyrics… What more could you ask for?

Doechii released many-a-singles this year so I knew a full project had to be coming. ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’ is feeding us with 19 songs and every single one of them is explicit lol. Another queer black woman in music who is showing up & making music the way they want. Noticing a trend here in some of my favorite artists?

This definitely feels like a shift in where Doechii has gone previously. The whole album feels very reminiscent of hip hop in the 90s & early 2000s. The song ‘BULLFROG’ in particular really reminds me of Missy Elliot’s sound. My recommendation for listening to & digesting this mixtape is breaking it up into two parts. The songs are not long and the total project only adds up to 47 minutes, but since there are 19 songs it feels longer than it actually is. There are a lot of details & elements packed into each song! Take it all in!

Here are some of my favorites from Doechii’s third project:

1. BOILED PEANUTS

What instrument is in the background of this song? Is that an oboe? Idk what it is but I love it. This may not be the first song on the album, but I really like how the first 3 songs all have a similar vibe. A very strong 3-track run, but this one just happens to be my favorite of the 3. Who is doing it like her? Quickly!

2. DENIAL IS A RIVER

I love this song. The best way to describe it is a journal entry in a song. The beat is tough, her flow is fantastic. I love the switch between her primary voice and the secondary higher pitched voice. Yes dialogue! Bring us along in the thought process! Her creativity and her vision is unlike anything else that is being produced by female rappers & hip-hop artists. This is so so good and so fun. I KNOW seeing this in person will go insaneeee!!!! I’m manifesting this for my future self.

3. BLOOM

This song only has 862k plays on Spotify, so idk if y’all just aren’t getting it or aren’t even giving it a chance or what. It’s giving an R&B interlude and I love it for that. Again, real ass lyrics too. Justice for this track.

4. BOOM BAP

the ad-libs on this song are silly and unserious but it’s true to Doechii’s nature so i like it. Doechii has a great balance of producing a quality song while also not taking herself too seriously on a track. the beat on this is also very memorable. i hate to compare every song to something i’ve heard before because it really is an original sound, but the best way i can describe this track is Kanye West Life of Pablo era. I think the musicality & diversity of the track combined with Doechii rapping instead of singing reminds me of his sound and production, but in her own way of course.

5. BEVERLY HILLS

this song reminds me of pop-music Doja Cat mixed with SZA. either one of them need to get on this song as a feature. its definitely one of the more pop-rap leaning songs on this project, which is pretty distinctly different from the other old-school hip-hop inspired songs on this project. this is the second to last song so if you even get this far in your listen, i promise you will find something to enjoy about it!

*Honorable Mention: Nissan Altima

I already covered Nissan Altima in my previous flow, so I will not be repeating myself. Check out Weekly Flow Vol V Part II to read my thoughts on the lead single of ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’.

There are a lot of songs on this project varying in tempo and style, so i really think there’s something for many different listeners. Every song is dynamic and includes a dance-worthy beat, which i love and need more artists to do. Keep me awake and interested while listening to your album! I hope one day this can be utilized as an example for good music production and good music engineering, we’re definitely struggling in the mainstream with too many samples and unimpressive production, looking at Coi Leray on that one!

Going back to my previous point about Doja Cat and Doechii collaborating, I think that could be a really smart and intentional collab knowing how Doja Cat has shifted into her rap/hip-hop era as a musician. She has done so many features in the past on pop songs, it only makes sense to do some rap & hip-hop features to solidify her strength in this genre as well.

SONGS

Debut

Yes, another KATSEYE song is landing in my weekly flow and I have absolutely no shame about it. Their songs are so catchy and I’ve seen so many videos of them performing & doing the little dance. I’m addicted. I’m invested. I want nothing but the best for this girl group. I saw a TikTok that said people who liked Fifth Harmony will like KATSEYE and I absolutely agree with that take. KATSEYE is this new generation’s version of Fifth Harmony, but with more training and support since they received KPOP training and are actually focusing on being a global group. These girls have so much potential and I think they can be a really good age appropriate face for young Gen Z and Gen Alpha!!! They literally only have like 5 songs, so stream them and give them a try ok!

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short flow this week as these few albums are really getting me through. happy listening!