This project allowed me the space and credibility [to explore it].” This collection of songs—the first third of what will ultimately become a three-part project, she says—feels both intimate and grand, with densely layered harmonies, serpentine melodies, and the rich, surprising instrumentation of a live band. But it can also be sung to yourself. Victoria Monét: the Ariana Grande songwriter making bed-quaking R&B. I have a trainer, I make sure that I'm eating healthy, and all these things are a daily focus of mine. So I think it was a way of being honest about what I’m going through.” Go There With You“This is another song where I wanted to find the vulnerable side of this sound. Discover more music, concerts, videos, and pictures with the largest catalogue online at Last.fm. Featuring Ty Dolla $ign – Ty Dolla $ign. Editors’ Notes In my eyes, it’s almost like back in the day when people are walking on the front lines and still singing ‘We Shall Overcome.’ I’m doing it my way. Something you could really sink into. As Sia did with Rihanna, Monét’s distinct melodic phrasing helped to shape Grande’s instantly identifiable, skittish cadence. I just want to write about a body part that's talked about by other people, and that's a form of taking the power back into our own hands. Jaguars can be confident and sexy, but there's still some issues that we're going to want to smooth over. Discover UK showbiz and celebrity breaking news from the MailOnline. 10. Expectations. Selena Gomez, Rare. Never miss out on gossip, celebrity photos, videos, divorces, scandals and more. After doing Jimmy Kimmel with live guitars, I realized I wanted them to be a part of my stage performance, so I love that about it. It feels like a little bit of a cliffhanger to me, ending with the a cappella like that. Or listen on the streaming platform of your choice. It’s funky and whimsical and psychedelic. 9. A lot of my previous projects are more playful and young, so I felt like this was an opportunity to show my more mature side. Monét's 2018 EP, “Life After Love, Pt. Victoria Monét, “JAGUAR”: Victoria Monét has helped everyone from Ariana Grande to Chloe x Halle with her songwriting skills, but it’s time the attention turns to her own albums. Of standing up for yourself and being outspoken. But amid the plush retro production of SG Lewis, who also aided fellow sequinned revivalist Dua Lipa on her latest album, Monét and guest vocalist Khalid find their voices smothered with a cosmic, phasing filter that blurs their sound until they become almost indistinguishable from the production – a bold, beautiful choice. Victoria Monét, “JAGUAR": Victoria Monét has helped everyone from Ariana Grande to Chloe x Halle with her songwriting skills, but it's time the attention turns to her own albums. A short film for the album was released on July 28, 2020. A lot of times we can make songs applicable to us, but they're not directly being like, ‘This is about a woman.’ It was a nice element to add, and based on a true story. Top albums of 2020: Toni Braxton, Springsteen and more ... Victoria Monét has helped everyone from Ariana Grande to Chloe x Halle with her songwriting skills, but it's … Monét's 2018 EP, “Life After Love, Pt. It feels simple and classic to me, and the guitars add an element that I didn't have anywhere else. It’s not being cocky or conceited. For her next move, Monét could have easily made a naked bid for the big leagues. I want to do that a million more times.”Experience“We released this song on Juneteenth and during Pride month, and to me, that’s a form of protest. It wasn’t like I studied the animal. By eschewing pop’s current see-what-sticks approach, Monét can build a luxury brand of her own design. 2," was a masterpiece, and she followed it up this year with another knockout. But also, ‘Touch Me’ is one of the only songs where you can hear me sing a different pronoun. On April 1, 2019, Victoria Monét and Ariana Grande released the single "Monopoly" while Ariana Grande was on her Sweetener World Tour. You know? But her latest project (she’s avoiding the term “album”), Jaguar, is something of a side step. This is the precipice on which Victoria Monét finds herself. The likes of, Victoria Monét: Experience ft Khalid and SG Lewis. Later on, I brought in a string player and this horn player, Arnetta [Johnson]. Welcome to February! Look at her now: somewhere along the way in the past decade, Selena Gomez became the premiere purveyor of good, weird pop. This natural, soulful feeling with soft instrumentation. For the past five years, few singers have been a part of as … raditionally, the jump from writers’ room to centre stage has been complicated. Read on for her track-by-track breakdown of the project.Moment“It instantly gives you the feeling of psychedelics and draws you into this other, warping world. It was like a gift from God, just like, ‘Okay, this is just going to pop into your head and give you a nice foundation for what you want to do.’ It ended up sounding really cool and came together in the perfect way. And it can be that! And more often than not, the hyper-sexualisation is pointedly fun: Touch Me, a mix of Janet Jackson-style confessional and SZA slow jam, winks at queer women (“Girl it’s been too long / And when you rock them short nails that’s lowkey sentimental / No keep ’em cut though so there ain’t no incidentals”). If there's anybody that could provide a little comedic relief in 2020, it's the … I imagine myself singing it in the mirror, like, ‘Remember who you are, remember what you have.’ It’s a form of affirmation. Their work together on the latter’s Thank U, Next album netted them Grammy nominations and gave Grande her only two solo US No 1 singles to date. Also, I love a good old workout anthem, because I work really, really hard in the gym. Monét’s 2018 EP, “Life After Love, Pt. A lot of the project’s songs are more aggressive, just, like, bluntly aggressive, but this one has a softer side. “Life is but a dream / Here we are inside of it and you’re inside of me,” she sings on the hazy, X-rated bedroom R&B of Moment, before suggesting that her partner “land it like a plane on my back if you can’t hold it”. 2," was a masterpiece, and she followed it up this year with another knockout. An indispensable part of growing … JAGUAR is a very enjoyable album which showcases Victoria Monét as both an extremely talented songwriter and artist. Monét is a masterful storyteller who delights in challenging assumptions; “Big Boss” flips a lyrical cliché about catering to the male ego into an empowerment ballad for women to sing to themselves. He introduced me and I had her come in and sang her my ideas for the horn parts, and then [producer] D’Mile sang to her his idea of the horn part, and then we put those two together to make that bridge, added the strings, and it felt like magic. We have goals for our own bodies. Listen free to Victoria Monét – Jaguar (Moment, Big Boss (Interlude) and more). Monét’s 2018 EP, “Life After Love, Pt. Released: January 10, 2020 Original review Buy it now on vinyl. I was adamant about finding a Black horn player, and my friend choreographed for Beyoncé and knew one from her Coachella set. We see if we look good in those jeans. It’s also about being realistic. This is the precipice on which Victoria Monét finds herself. Two Black artists coming together, unafraid and unapologetic about singing their song.”Ass Like That“This song just says ‘freedom.’ It says I don't really care about your opinion about the title, about the song, about the quote-unquote radio playability, any of that. Laced with striking idiosyncrasies ... Victoria Monét. The song served as the lead single to her upcoming debut project. I'm hoping that people will love the interludes enough that one day I can do a project of all of the interludes from JAGUAR and turn them into songs.”Jaguar“I honestly don't know where ‘Jaguar’ came from. !’ She felt like it was a different side of me, a side that people who’ve heard my previous work would be excited to learn about. Victoria Monét is stepping into the spotlight. That's why I feel like this song in particular was a gift. She soon took to writing and began working with producer Rodney Jerkins (aka Darkchild). Victoria Monét, “Jaguar”: Victoria Monét has helped everyone from Ariana Grande to Chloe x Halle with her songwriting skills, but it’s time the attention turns to her own albums. Here are seven albums you might have missed in 2020. And not just as a recording artist: She’s already one of the industry’s most in-demand songwriters and producers, collaborating on standouts by Fifth Harmony, Brandy, Chloe x Halle, and more—even grabbing two Grammy nominations for her work on Ariana Grande’s thank u, next.She titled this project after the fierce jungle cat—known for lurking undetected until, when you least expect it, they attack. (Tribe)This is no lunge for the mainstream from the Ariana Grande songwriter, but an assured, inventive exploration of autonomy, First published on Thu 6 Aug 2020 12.00 BST. And the group told the Melismatic blog back in 2010 they recorded 21 songs for the project, which was expected to come out in … It feels like a cousin of ‘Dive’ to me. “A lot of people know me first as a songwriter, but my artistry has always been there. Just ask Britney which “Spanish and a baby” singer’s album inspired her 2016 triumph, Glory. Unlike the wide sonic berth of her previous EPs, which left her struggling to break through the stripped-back R&B, dancehall rhythms and beats reminiscent of Timbaland’s heyday, Jaguar is as sleek and refined as its namesake, the production luscious with live instrumentation and brass. Similarly, “Ass Like That” flatly rejects our culture’s objectification of the female body: Instead, it’s a workout anthem in which the only person whose opinion matters is the one in the mirror. [This song] gives you a nice, realistic window into any relationship, when you’re going through an argument and need to think about the positive and act on that instead.”Touch Me“Instead of thinking about this song completing the project, I wanted it to be more of a pathway into part two for when the project completes itself as an album. ‘Big Boss’ does that in song form.”Dive“My music is based on stuff that I've had to absorb as a woman, and a lot of women have had to hear—whether in music or in life—men saying things that women would be frowned upon for saying, like, ‘I want to see what your head game like.’ So I felt like it was important for this project to take power back into our hands, to say things that we think about and talk about when women get together. Similarly, she declines to soften her lyrics. I don't think that we get a lot of songs that are directly saying that, especially in a sexual way. After discussing it with my team and people who I care about, I realized that a lot of people don't have this opportunity, so part of my responsibility is making sure that there is representation in these spaces. The first track of part two starts with an a cappella, so it makes a lot of sense when you hear it down the line. “I just wanna see what your head game like,” she purrs over a chorus of squeaking bed springs and orgasmic groaning, directing her lover to: “Lick the beach / Fuck the shore / Make me scream / All aboard.” The practicalities of getting sand in delicate areas notwithstanding, Monét makes what could be cringeworthy sound genuinely sumptuous. And especially when the strings come in, it really takes you somewhere.”Big Boss (Interlude)“It’d be natural to assume this song was talking to someone else, someone you want to make feel good. Despite releasing a number of EPs since 2014, the 27-year-old is best known for her writing credits, specifically her seven-year collaborative relationship with Ariana Grande. Victoria Monét has helped everyone from Ariana Grande to Chloe x Halle with her songwriting skills, but it's time the attention turns to her own albums. Label: Tribe Records (17) - none • Format: 9x, File MP3, Album 320 kbps • Genre: Funk / Soul, Pop • Style: Contemporary R&B, Soul Victoria Monét* - Jaguar (2020, 320 kbps, File) | Discogs Explore Because when we look in the mirror sometimes, we check our own ass out. It’s a window into my more vulnerable side. Copyright © 2020 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. While Jaguar is designated merely as part one of Victoria Monét's debut album, it follows four EPs and a larger volume of songwriting work that can be traced back to 2010, the year the artist made a stealth entry as the co-writer of Diddy - Dirty Money's "I Hate That You Love Me." I just wanted a song that allows people to have that. A Jaguar Christmas: The Orchestral Arrangements - EP. 2020 Preview Editors’ Notes Victoria Monét is stepping into the spotlight. On the sultry Ass Like That, she sends up the fetishisation of black women’s bodies by giving herself full autonomy over her own. In late 2019, Monét released the single "Ass Like That". But the answer I came to was no. Oral sex is paradisiacal on Dive, which cascades like a waterfall. These glimpses of Monét’s wry personality are Jaguar’s secret sauce, demonstrating the clear division between her work as a songwriter and her identity as a solo artist. It's just like, ‘This is what I feel about myself and I'm allowed to say it, to be positive about myself.’ Because sometimes, when people say something positive to me, I’ll find a way to negate it. The group released one mixtape and recorded an album. Victoria Monét, “JAGUAR": Victoria Monét has helped everyone from Ariana Grande to Chloe x Halle with her songwriting skills, but it's time the attention turns to her own albums. And I had wondered, like, if I release music that feels celebratory and happy, is that dismissive of everything that we're going through? Commercial viability feels besides the point: Jaguar’s assertiveness suggests an artist laying the foundations for her legacy, pop’s fickle game of favourites be damned. Traditionally, the jump from writers’ room to centre stage has been complicated. Monét… Punchy immediacy is key to success on streaming and social media platforms, but Monét refreshingly gives each song space to breathe. She managed to provide a brilliant balance between her talents making JAGUAR another project in the run for one of the best R&B / Soul projects of 2020. Experience, clearly indebted to Off the Wall-era Quincy Jones, finds Monét brushing up against 2020’s appetite for disco nostalgia. On this edition of All Songs Considered, we pick our favorite music released in August 2020, featuring everything from the genre-busting indie rock of Bartees Strange and Victoria Monét… 9 tracks (25:27). Nine years into his career as a solo artist, the UK’s MNEK finally scored his first No 1 last week. But sometimes it's important to be like, 'Yes, I am,' or 'Thank you.' People who have been around for a minute will pick up on that.”. She demonstrates her self-assurance by lacing Jaguar’s poppier moments with striking idiosyncrasies. Time to ring in a new month with some tracks by your favorite queer artists. The Sacramento singer has a gift for making sexy yet subversive R&B and pop that challenges social norms around gender, race, and sexuality. She became involved in performing arts at a young age, singing in the youth choir at her church and performing in a city dance team. When I first played it for my mom, she was like, ‘That's you? I think it's important for music to have that. Victoria Monét McCants (born May 1, 1993), known professionally as Victoria Monét, is an American singer and songwriter. City Girls - City On Lock. ... On Jaguar, Victoria Monet allows her sexuality to serve as a motive for the sometimes retro-sounding R&B disco-infused project. I also wanted to use double entendres and to make it clever so that if you played it around your grandmother, she wouldn't be like, ‘Turn it off!’ But when you really think about it and read the lyrics, you know there's deeper meaning going on.” We Might Even Be Falling in Love (Interlude)“Honestly, this song just felt like a vibe and it made me feel like I was in the '70s. 2,” was a masterpiece, and she followed it up this year with another knockout. Jaguar is the debut studio album by Victoria Monét, released on August 7, 2020, via Tribe Records and Platoon. If they say I look cute, I’ll say, ‘Oh, I just woke up.’ Something to make me feel better about receiving the compliment. The likes of Sia and Pharrell have deftly glided from backroom hitmakers to pop behemoths. After a languid intro of stacked, reverb-laden vocal harmonies, the title track slides into a chugging groove punctuated with jubilant horns a la Bruno Mars. It’s kind of like, ‘Girrrrrl,’ a little gossipy, but it’s also about us saying things to others the way they’re said to us. 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