Play/Listed Weekly for Oct 9th, 2020

Here’s the latest batch of new music, fresh from October’s oven!

Don’t worry, you can still find the older monthly playlists on my Spotify page.

Here are my highlights from today’s New Music Friday:

It Might Take a Woman - Girlhood
Girlhood’s debut album might be my current most anticipated album, but they’re keeping me happy with this slow trickle of singles. This London duo were clearly raised on the music I love the most (90s R&B and Neo Soul), and it hits just the right spot.
Like I Feel - Xavier Omär featuring Mereba
I cannot get enough of the bass line in this song, and every time it drops out, the song floats on a slow trill. Is it still a trill when it’s that slow? Probably not, but the point is this song feels like a warm bath that I want to soak in for hours.
Hypochondriac- Sasha Sloan
Yes, we’re still in the chill section of this playlist. I don’t know anything about Sash Sloan, but “Hypochondriac” is a sweet little song about how love has given her a reason to care about her health. I might have to see what else she does.
Touch Me (Remix) - Victoria Monét featuring Kehlani
I can just imagine the production meeting for this remix. “How can we make a sapphic-leaning Victoria Monét song called “Touch Me” even sexier?” … Obviously: put Kehlani on it. This is fire.
JEWELZ - Anderson .Paak
Look, it’s Anderson .Paak. And Timbaland lends a hand in production, so you know it’s going to bump.
Self Care - Tank and the Bangas
“Self Care” was released along with an announcement of a new EP, Friend Goals to be released on my birthday this year! So basically, this is a pre-celebration of my life, right?

If Olamide is a new name to you, you’re not alone - I had not heard of this Nigerian hip hop artist until my Tidal wisely and surprising suggested I take a listen last night. Although I have nothing to compare it to in Olamide’s discography (yet), Carpe Diem has an unceasing groovy energy. And though I don’t always understand every lyric, I can easily confirm that the music embodies the album title (latin for Seize the Day) perfectly.

From the first catchy afrobeat moment of “Another Level”, followed up with the strongest single from the record, “Green Light,” I knew this was going to be a highlight for the week. I need something to rotate with my other Nigerian faves of the year, Burna Boy and Tiwa Savage.

This whole album is a vibe, and I’ve only listened to it twice through - it’s already been helping me get through the beginning of Vancouver’s rainy season, which apparently started last night.

There are a couple of other moments that have stood out to me so far: “Eru,” which is the other big single; the chiller vibe of “At Your Service,” which always piques my attention; and the Bad Boy Timz-assisted “Loading” (I’m thinking of adding it to my bathing/getting ready playlist).

That’s my first instinct on this. I plan to spend considerable time with Olamide for the rest of the season.

Dinner Party: Dessert - Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder, Kamasi Washington

I didn’t even know I was waiting for this. Back in early July, this R&B/jazz super-quartet dropped their collaboration album Dinner Party and if I had started this project even a few weeks earlier, it would have 100% been in this spot. Dinner Party: Dessert is the same record, but with some extra guest stars.

We learn the differences of this record subtly. You might turn your head during the first track, “Sleepless Nights,” and think, “was that Buddy verse there before?” No it wasn’t. And at the end of that track, Snoop Dogg shows up and welcomes us to this new album rendition.

The next track, “Love You Bad” quickly breaks down and adds a whole new section with Malaya - a singer I didn’t recognize, but who’s a common collaborator with Terrace Martin. “From My Heart and My Soul” opens to Tank waxing poetic about seasons and Stevie Wonder before she rhymes later on the track.

But my favourite addition to this record is likely unsurprising: Rapsody and Herbie Hancock show up on “The Mighty Tree,” and I can no longer remember how it sounds without them. Rapsody also (deservedly) has the longest rap verse on the album.

Seeing as “Freeze Tag” was already my #1 highlight from the original record, I was a bit worried about how they might flip it, but Cordae adds a rap verse that gives the song just enough movement to improve it, against the odds.

Basically every song is infused with a little hip hop that is missing on the original, making for a complete album built on the holy trilogy of music genres: r&b, jazz, and rap.