Few artists shaped the sound of the 2010s as much as Sampha. Having built a reputation as a cutting-edge tastemaker, there was a time when it felt like the South London-hailing singer, songwriter, and producer was everywhere all at once, thanks to his unforgettable vocals, visionary production skills and soul-baring lyricism.
After years of nonstop work and external accolades, Sampha opted to take a step back and turn inward. “I was just dealing with a few things,” he says simply. He became a father, welcoming his first child, a daughter, into the world in 2020. He began work on his sophomore record,, the way he always does—in solitude, taking refuge in art and finding inspiration in Kodwo Eshun’s 1998 book on Afrofuturism in music,.
The album opens with the frantic, piano-driven stream of consciousness “Stereo Colour Cloud ,” where Sampha laments existentialism amidst the always insistent passage of time . He echoes that spiritual searching on upbeat, rap-driven second single “Only,” one of the project’s standouts.
Rediscovering the self by embracing the little things in life is a recurring theme throughout the project. “Spirit 2.0,” the album’s ethereal second song, emphasizes the power of love and spirituality in the healing process . Meanwhile, “Jonathan L.