The album is a product of that emotional and intellectual rigor. Around January of last year, she sent the sprawling document to collaborators and friends. If you wanted to work with her, you’d need to do the work. “And that’s what I’ll say about this record. It was not like I made a zillion songs and then narrowed it down. It’s not giving that,” Kelela adds. “Even when people approached me, they had such a clear picture of what they were going to do for me.
Kelela was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in a nearby suburb in Maryland. Her parents, who immigrated to the U.S. from Ethiopia, never married and co-parented from apartments in the same building. During her childhood, she was surrounded by music; she played violin, sang in the choir, and listened to a broad palette of different genres. While in college, she started singing at open mic nights before branching out and collaborating with artists in D.C.’s indie and punk scenes.
“That perspective has been very stifling for me,” she adds. “And I think one of the things I wanted to do with this record is to affirm myself and liberate myself around those judgments.” She constructed the album not unlike an extended DJ mix. Songs transition with subtle pitch modulation familiar on dancefloors, moving from traditional R&B to hints of dancehall, drum n’ bass, and techno.
kelelam 👏👏👊💖
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