#tommy wright iii

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Tommy Wright III - On Da Creep (feat. Mac T-Dog & Princess Loko)

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rip princess loko

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[elliot-amy]

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On SoundCloud and streaming services

[hollowshawdy]

THIS MY FIRST FULLY SELF PRODUCED SONG! GO PEEP THAT SHIT AND CHECK IT OUT FRFR

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[sinceileftyoublog]

Beyoncé Album Review: Renaissance

(Parkwood Entertainment/Columbia)

BY JORDAN MAINZER

“There’s a whole lot of people in the house,” Beyoncé sings on “Break My Soul”, the first single from her new album Renaissance. Sure, it’s a declaration of, simply, numbers, her various collaborators, the swath of samples from decades of music history peppered throughout. But it’s also a statement of inclusiveness. Renaissance, purportedly the first installment of a trilogy of albums, celebrates Black and LGBTQ+ music and the judgement-free zones they honor. Representative of Beyoncé’s state of mind during the pandemic, it exemplifies her self-love and desire to break free in a time of isolation. And of course, it’s full of braggadocio and skill with the research and credentials to back it up.

It’s that last part that stands out the most on Renaissance. Samples and interpolations of house, bounce, and soul classics like Danube Dance’s “Unique”, Big Freedia’s “Explode”, and Teena Marie’s “Ooo La La La” span multiple songs. “ALIEN SUPERSTAR” borrows from something as ubiquitous as Right Said Fred’s “I’m Too Sexy” and academically well-regarded as Barbara Ann Teer’s “Black Theater” speech while simultaneously paying homage to the ballroom scene of the 60s in NYC, created by the Black and Latinx queer community in opposition to the racism of the white drag scenes. “Stilettos kicking vintage crystal off the bar / Category: bad bitch, I’m the bar,” Beyoncé chants over a techno beat. To hear these influences rub elbows in the same song, one that’s already been heard by millions of people across the globe, is, simply, pretty fucking cool. Ditto ballroom-vogue-house hybrid “PURE/HONEY”, which juxtaposes the pulsating backbone of Mr. Fingers’ “Mystery of Love” with Kevin Aviance’s “Cunty” as Beyoncé deadpans, “It should cost a million to look that good.” And “CHURCH GIRL” seamlessly combines Chicago and Southern hip-hop, starting with a lo-fi sample of The Clark Sisters’ gospel tune “Center of Thy Will” but morphing into skittering bounce; the moment when The Showboys’ “Drag Rap” beat comes is curation perfection.

The best parts of Renaissance, though, are the ones that emphasize Beyoncé herself above all else. Yes, her vocals dominate from the get-go. On opener “I’M THAT GIRL”, propulsive electronics slow into a reggaetón beat as she coos over a swirling sample of Tommy Wright III’s “Still Pimpin”, standing out no matter the tempo. Not even A.G. Cook’s thumping beat on “ALL UP IN YOUR MIND” can fully match her power, her ability to fill the thoughts of the minds of her lovers, friends, and admirers. Really, it’s when Beyoncé is given total room that she’s best able to communicate raw feeling. There’s a chunk of songs in a row on Renaissance with no samples, the space filled with just her singing, incredible melisma and all. Such is the case on the devotional “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA”, where Beyoncé singing, “I think you’re so cool / Even though I’m cooler than you” is both funny and extremely serious. That is, she laughs it off but proves it--as if she needed to--on album standout “VIRGO’S GROOVE”, a sexed-up roller rink jam that sports perhaps her best vocal performance ever, ping-ponging up and down the scales.

Ultimately, Renaissance welcomes and educates. During her wordplay on “COZY”, Beyoncé’s sure to reference the progress pride flag, and she includes excerpts from a popular TikTok by trans television star Ts Madison. Her deep dive into LGBTQ+ culture calls to the past and look to the future. Is it pandering? That’s not really for me, a straight cisgender white male, to decide. Allyship is certainly important to Beyoncé, especially considering the album’s dedication to her late gay cousin who helped raise her and her sister Solange (and who died from AIDS-related illnesses). It’s an album much different from her brilliant 2013 self-titled record or Lemonade, not born of lived experience as much as a desire to lift her forebears. Renaissance ends with “SUMMER RENAISSANCE”, which prominently interpolates Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love”, the unofficial transition from disco to house, the song where, upon hearing it, Brian Eno rushed to David Bowie claiming he had heard “the sound of the future.” Renaissance isn’t really the sound of the future, the past, or the present. It’s the sound of class in session.