Lucky Daye - My Window ft. Mahalia
“My Window” sees Mahalia and Lucky Daye collaborate for the second time as this follows the up tempo track “Regular People'' which appeared on Mahalia’s Sophomore album “LOVE AND COMPROMISE”. The song “My Window” however features on Lucky Daye’s new EP “Table for Two” which is a 6 track project that features collaborations with female artists on each song to help explore varying facets of love and relationships.
“My Window” moves to explore the enduring element of relationships and how the inability to work on the demanding aspects of this union will not allow a couple to benefit from the wonders of Love. These ideas are apparent particularly within the chorus when Mahalia states “If you can't stand the rain / Then I can't stand the sunshine / If you can't take the pain / Then I can't make your sun rise / If you can't stand the rain / Then I can't stand the sunshine / If you can't take the pain / Then I can't make your sun rise”. This chorus is coated by dialogue carried out by Lucky Daye and Mahalia of whom act out the protagonist's role in the storyline and they move to discuss the elements of their relationship that led to the resounding feelings apparent within the chorus. One of these gripes is apparent in the following words from Lucky Daye “You got your guard up, defend / Oh, oh and now you let up / Text irregular, rain it got us fallin', hmm, oh-oh, oh” The words are heavily influenced by the song “I Can't Stand the Rain” by Ann Peebles which was widely popularised by Missy Elliot when she sampled the same song for her classic hit “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)”.
The instrumental incorporates a soft drum pattern , a foundational piano melody and a later backing chilled guitar riff to reflect the mellow and brooding emotions present within the lyrics. Cadenza also made use of beautiful harp elements, subtle percussion and spacy synths to add his own brand of uniqueness to allow the portrayal of a couple at odds to be done melodic justice.
SiR - Teach Me
“Teach Me” is a new single from SiR which appears in the soundtrack for the film “Judas and the Black Messiah”. The album features an array of talents such as Nas, Jay-Z and the late Nipsey Hussle to name a few. The film itself details the life of Civil Rights Activist Fred Hampton and his role within the Black Panther Party (BPP) and the FBI Informant (Bill O’Neil) of whom infiltrated the Party.
Within “Teach Me” SiR plays with the concept of learning in love by focusing on an individual's ability to teach love to their other half. These ideas are prominent in the following words “Ooh, take me to the opera / Take me even further / Teach me to live with no regrets / Teach me to love with no remorse”. Under a greater lens SiR brings attention to the misconceptions attached to love and how personal the experience itself actually is ; the repetition of “See the world's got the wrong idea about true love / But you can teach me” highlights this sentiment and also shows how much SiR longs for this unique and distinct brand of love.
The instrumental is both pensive and thought provoking ; the backing organs set the scene for what becomes a sombre and heartfelt track. The muted trumpets are dispersed evenly within the melody to hone down and cement the subdued theme present within the song. The soft percussion, backing bass guitar and mellow drum pattern rounds out impressive mastering work from Colin Leonard as he creates the perfect stage to display SiR’s vocal talents.
Pink Sweat$ - PINK CITY
“PINK CITY“ appears on Pink Sweat$’ debut album Pink Planet which was released via Atlantic Records this past Friday. The album features the six songs from his 2020 EP "The Prelude" and 10 new tracks. The album itself only has one featured artist in the shape of Kehlani on the track “At My Worst” and the project as a whole primarily discusses the strength in individualism and the varying complexities attached to love. “PINK CITY” explores the conditions Pink Sweat$ encountered and survived prior to achieving his current level of stardom as well as the importance he placed upon establishing his own safe haven. These ideas ring true from the offset when Pink Sweat$ states the following “We were born in the rubber, yeah / We were raised in the mud / Yeah, it's hard in the city / Where I'm from, mm / Tryna live, gotta make it / Make it out of the slum / Yeah, it's hard in the city / The city where I'm from, mm”.
The song is finely coated with soft howls and adjoining choir elements which give it all the inklings of a classic uplifting ballad. The inspiriting and triumphant nature of the track is also heavily reflected within the choice of piano chord progressions and the electric guitar riffs as the instrumental moves to create the perfect backdrop for Pink Sweat$ to detail the optimism he managed to find amidst adversity.