Whether she’s cooing, humming, or rapping, she brings an easygoing grace and playfulness that tends to open up songs. Like Jeremih, Ty Dolla $ign, and other R&B artists who straddle genres, she’s got the fluency to provide more than a big hook or play foil to another star. There’s an audience and a market for Aiko’s atmospheric take on R&B, but the most interesting aspects of her music have always been rooted in her malleability. But the tempo never rises above a resting heart rate, the acoustic flourishes never dictate the shapes of songs, and Aiko’s performances aren’t consistently magnetic. And her voice certainly has that power the vocal runs on “Surrender” are variously controlled and indulgent, evaporating into the cloudy synths and condensing beneath them as a breathy purr.
Aiko is clearly a student of Quiet Storm, a format that gives the voice space to contract and expand in carnal waves. Produced almost entirely by Lejkeys and the duo Fisticuffs, the album is soft and hushed, dulled percussion and starry keys drifting in a vacuum.
The production plays a huge role in that inertia. Against her feathery melodies, there’s no traction, no dynamism. “Ten thousand hours turned to ten thousand bridal flowers,” Nas raps flatly about his marriage to Kelis, sounding bored of his own story. On “10k Hours,” Aiko and Nas turn Malcolm Gladwell’s magic number into a dry index of personal history. “Just don’t get the wrong impression,” Aiko pleads, her charm suddenly depleted like Cinderella at midnight. The verses are improved from the hokey original, but it’s weird to hear the self-proclaimed “pussy fairy” turn coy and inert. The jarring “Happiness over Everything (H.O.E.)” is a retread of “ Hoe,” from her debut mixtape Sailing Souls. Unfortunately, everything that makes that opening run charismatic and personable is abandoned as Chilombo stretches on.
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The song is full of similarly odd flips in perspective (“That dick make me so proud”), blurring who is giving and receiving pleasure like a titillating funhouse mirror. “I know you love fucking me,” she declares, turning a passive construction into a boast. This suite ends with “P*$$Y Fairy (OTW),” which opens with a yearning, bass-boosted intro then blossoms into a twinkling ode to Aiko’s sexual prowess. On “B.S.” she glows with self-satisfaction over a ticking hi-hat: “Flexin on my exes in my Model X/Pretty little skinny little bitty/Body Model X.” By the end of the song she’s so charged up that seeing her replacement “boosts her self-esteem.” On “Triggered (Freestyle),” Aiko fumes over reminders of the old relationship: “Trying to let the time kill/All our memories/All you meant to me/All that history/All that’s history,” she croons, each riff on “all” cutting deeper. The record is loosely about a woman enduring heartbreak and emerging stronger, and the opening suite of songs wears that framework lightly. Instead of heady explorations of grief, Aiko focuses on the standard peaks and valleys of life post-breakup. I want to see and hear more of her, and I have a feeling that she’s just getting started.Compared to the multimedia odyssey of Trip, which was accompanied by a poetry book and short film, Chilombo is leaner and more grounded. Her highly anticipated album, ‘ Souled Out’ is coming out in 2014. She has done some killer collabs this year. I am very happy that Jhene is getting so much shine. In a previous post, I was saying that it’s crazy how some artists are so underrated. It’s something you wanna put in your car it’s perfect for the summer time. Sail Out has a lot of the Hip Hop/Rap influence on it, even with the beats. It’s like bridging the gap between Sailing Soul(s) and Souled Out, said Aiko to Rap Up TV. Jhene’s voice is so soft and soothing, you’ll find yourself relaxing as soon as you hit play on your ipod and her angelic voice comes through your headphones.
I’ll be overplaying these songs too. Her sound is very unique. After listening to the EP, I’m definitely not going to break tradition. I played ‘Higher’ until I couldn’t play it anymore lmao. I was obsessed with ‘ Sailing Souls‘ when it was released 2 years ago. I have always thought that she was so beautiful. I remember Jhene (like most) from B2K days.
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