Tag: R&B

Joints and Jams

Joints & Jams – Childish Gambino & Radiant Children

Kia Clay
Click to hear the entire playlist

In my near decade of being enthralled with Issa Rae’s depictions of awkwardness and insecurity, one thing I could always count on was getting put on to great music. 2021 marks both The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl’s 10th anniversary and the conclusion of a groundbreaking five years of Insecure. In honor of that, here are my two favorite songs (one from each property) that I got hip to while watching.

Childish Gambino – L.E.S. (2011) [The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl]

Until this point, the only thing I knew Donald Glover from was the excellent series Community. And honestly, I think that’s the only thing I really need to know him from. None of his other endeavors, including his alter ego as a musician, do much for me. However, the sweeping strings and that driving beat that start this track off are infectious. The song depicts his rather unmemorable night out with a woman on the lower east side, but the production on this track is top tier. It breathes the vibes of that neighborhood – having been there exactly once, I am an expert. Trust me.

Radiant Children – Life’s a Bitch (2018) [Insecure]

The end of the third season’s premiere saw Issa Dee sleeping on the couch of the guy she made a bad decision with, in hot water at her non-profit job, driving for Lyft to get extra money for her own place and figuring out why the Party Lyft idea may not be the greatest idea (even though she did get the opportunity to pick up Nathan with the face). It’s that classic moment in your late 20s where so many things are out of your control, so many things suck. Despite what the title of the song may lead you to believe, it’s not about giving up, but about letting go and doing you. The bass line in the intro is fun and funky, like a 70s throwback and the sing-a-long hook is a strange, wonderful, conflicting mix of nihilism and optimism.

Joints and Jams

Joints & Jams – H.E.R. and Snoh Aalegra

Kia Clay
Click to hear the entire playlist

H.E.R. – Damage (2020)

My friend and I were riding around in her car years ago when she asked me if I’d heard of her. Well, not “her,” but H.E.R. “Who? No?” I questioned. She immediately pulled up a playlist on Spotify and relayed H.E.R.’s mythology in an almost breathless reverence: no one has seen her face, no one knows her name but people are saying that she might be that girl that had that song years ago. Gabi Wilson? Remember her? I nodded along, having no idea who Gabi Wilson was but too caught up in the story for that to register. I liked the music my friend was playing, but each song kind of blended into the next for me. There wasn’t anything I could put my finger on as the “it” thing for me. At that point, anyway. Fast forward a few years and if you are even a slight fan of R&B you have heard of her. Well, not “her,” but H.E.R. If you described her as prodigious, I would not argue, but her deep love of and protectiveness of the R&B genre is what sets her apart to me, which is made apparent in the sample she chose for this song. “Making Love in the Rain,” by trumpeter Herb Alpert (with an assist from a whole Janet Jackson on BGVs) was a top 10 R&B hit a full ten years before H.E.R. was even born, but its use signifies a deftness and sophistication in her understanding of the cultural significance of the building blocks of the genre. She’s performing at the Grammys, right? I swear, if they don’t get Janet to drop in…

Snoh Aalegra – Fool for You (2017)

I may have heard of Snoh prior to 2020, but I seriously doubt it. And no shame, because that’s when she came into a lot of our consciousness. One random quarantine Friday, I was going through Janet Jackson’s IG stories, where she was reposting fan stories and I saw this mix by DJ Jason Y  putting very familiar music to an unfamiliar voice. I screen grabbed it and listened to it at least 30 times and then went to find the singer on Spotify. While it didn’t have the same magic without that classic Janet track underneath, I certainly saw why people were talking about her. The song that I chose for today’s playlist is from her earlier effort and this exemplifies that modern take on a 60s sound with a dreamy quality that she absolutely dominates.