Now, listen, even though I used to house-sit for Ad-Rock from the Beastie Boys, I am, admittedly, not a huge hip-hop fan, even as I do appreciate and respect it, as an art form. Sometimes, though, I actually really dig it. Such is the case with Little Simz and Lotus. A Mercury Prize winner, Little Simz came out swinging with her 2019 debut and has continued to hone her brilliance across five more releases, leading to last year's Lotus.
Pulling from Afro beat, jazz, and rock sensibilities, as needed, the album features live instrumentation as the backbone supporting Simz's fierce and feisty melodic takedowns of naysayers and gaslighters, turning her pain into poetry. That makes for a fairly irresistible combination. Pitchfork calls “Thief” “an invigorating entry point. ... In the pantheon of diss tracks, it sits alongside Lauryn Hill’s evisceration of Wyclef Jean on 'Lost Ones,' unflinchingly wielding familiarity as a weapon.”
But she's not JUST out for the blood of her betrayers. Simz finds forgiveness and forward motion in the midst of it all, as well. As Qobuz notes, “This being Simz, she reveals a full palette of emotions in no time. ...Always introspective and unafraid to speak her mind or call out those who've disappointed her, it's still Simz's voracious musical vocabulary that sets her apart from not just any other rapper but any other musician.”
Produced by Miles Clinton James and speckled with cameos from Michael Kiwanuka, Obongjayar, Moses Sumney, and others, this album shows how magical music can be made when artificial boundaries are ignored.
Hear the whole episode on January 14 at 6 am, 12 pm, and 6 pm PT.
