Ok guys, here’s your chance to check out the Top Ten Albums of 2021 – and I have to say, this is a pretty dope list! I hope you think so too, so enjoy!
Be sure to check out NEW LEASE MUSIC’s Top Ten Songs of 2021 tomorrow.
Inspired by the solidarity shown in response to the racial injustices that resurfaced in 2020, singer/songwriter, model, and actor WELLINGTON BULLINGS was compelled to tell a story that would focus on an empowering narrative. That narrative shines on her new single ‘Flame’. The song fuses Afrobeat and Soul to celebrate the beauty, power, and resilience of Black people (especially Black women).
To highlight this message, Wellington collaborated with a team of all-Black artists and local Black women-owned businesses for the music video. Everything in the video– from the custom garments and the handmade crown, to the cinematography, and choreography –were all crafted by Black dancers (of the acclaimed Cleo Parker Robinson dance company), videographers (Blackat productions), and fashion designers to create an aesthetic chock-full of meaningful symbolism. The lighting of the candle at the beginning of the video represents ancestral healing; the wired-flame crown represents rebirth.
Wellington Bullings says of her latest single: “When writing ‘Flame,’ I wanted to tell an uplifting story that would empower us. The music and visuals are meant to remind people that our story is so much more than pain and trauma. Yes, there is a painful history to recognize, but we also need to recognize and celebrate Black beauty and brilliance.”
North London’s multi-instrumentalist RAY ALEX, explores themes of telepathy, lust and psychedelics in sensual single ‘Synchronise To Your Rhythm’.
Having been named in Audiomack’s ‘Best of Britain’ list two months running, and after collaborating with Julia Romana (Duckwrth/GLAM) and LA’s Sydney Jane, who has turned the heads of Disclosure and MJ Cole, Ray continues to push boundaries in UK R&B.
‘Synchronise To Your Rhythm’ details a sultry evening on a psychedelic journey with a lover in Rotterdam, drawing influences from the early 80s and early 90s funk with a modern, jazzy R&B feel. Ray Alex presents a hazy vignette packed with chopped up guitar samples, a neck-jarring beat and a chilling, wispy falsetto that unravels memories of a long distance spiritual connection magnetised by telepathic dreams, LSD and lust.
Ray’s smooth offering follows his previous single ‘Erased’ which received frequent airplay on Soho Radio and Amazing Radio and was featured on Clash Magazine, First World Records and Souletiquette playlists.
‘Synchronise To Your Rhythm’ is the second release from Ray’s self-produced EP, ‘Good To Me’, slated for release in November…but for now wrap your ears around this beauty…
Japan-born songstress Grace GRACE AMI presents lo-fi single ‘What’s Perfect?’ paired with a soulful and spirited vocal display. Grace’s jazzy intonation practically hovers above the bedroom-style beat as her delivery melts into a delicate groove.
‘What’s Perfect?’ arrives on the heels of her 2021 debut EP PICNIC, which amassed over one million streams. Merging the intimacy and imagination of bedroom-pop with the lush and languid grooves of R&B, PICNIC includes previously released singles like ‘True Feelings (a sweetly melancholy piece laced with bluesy acoustic guitar work), and ‘My Eyes’ (a piano-driven song that landed on Apple Music’s New in Pop playlist). In addition, PICNIC opens with Grace’s debut single “Eternal Sunshine,” a gorgeously quirky meditation on the meaning of happiness. All throughout the EP, Grace shows her gift for crafting unforgettable melodies, as well as her soft and subtle but endlessly commanding vocal presence.
Why not check out the video for the trance-like video below…