I first found out about Little Simz thanks to my favorite band, Gorillaz. She performed "Garage Palace," a song that was not currently out yet at the time, on stage with them in LA at the Forum back in October 2017. I never feel right when I hear songs like that on the road. I don't know the song so I find it hard to get into and I couldn't hear the lyrics because my brain didn't know what to looks for, if that makes sense. I didn't like it. But can I tell you when I first heard it properly, when it was released, I was beside myself. Simz had amazing cadence, timing, a powerful voice, and lightning fast vocals. What a powerhouse. I went straight to Spotify and downloaded all of her albums. When I saw her live again in Ireland, with a couple I actually met at the LA Gorillaz show (read my concert culture piece for more info on that), she was now one of three opening acts for Gorillaz playing her own music and of course accompanying them for Garage Palace. I was floored by her performance. I thought she was good on her album, but live? She has enormous stage presence, high energy, and her lyrics are charged with electricity that you just can't replicate in a studio. Her words are sharp, hit hard, hit fast, ring of truth and floor you with the complexity of the word play throughout.
Simbiatu ("Simbi") Ajikawo, as she's known to her family, is a Northern Londoner with Nigerian parents who's received praise from Kendrick Lamar (13:10 is the time stamp for his comments), had her 2014 mix tape Blank Space on Jay-Z's Life + Times website, and opened for Lauryn Hill. She's a hard worker, making one or more mixtapes a year since she was young, eight in total, and rapping since she was 9. At the tender age of 7 she discovered Missy Elliot and fell in love with hip-hop, enjoying the work of Ludacris, Busta Rhymes, and more, eventually leading to her writing and rapping her own stuff at age 9. She raps a bit about this in her song God Bless Mary, "all I could think about in my maths class was rhyming and figuring out my timing, couldn't get me to shut up, if you didn't hear me I'm miming" which is off her first album, A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons. A dark, gritty and grungy album released when she was only 21 years old, filled with hard, confrontational vocals softens up in songs like God Bless Mary and the ethereal backing on Wings. My favorite of which (other than GBM) is Tainted where she contemplates her success and who she does and doesn't want to be, with the person in Tainted being the latter. When I first listened to it, I thought it was a representation of her struggle, but the more I've listened to it, the more it almost seems to be a satirical piece on the industry itself. I just like the way it flows and the difference between the "inner-monologue" and the projected attitude of the character in it, which I don't think is meant to actually be her. Though I could be wrong about that?
Her second full-length album in 2016, Stillness in Wonderland is a concept album set around the theme of Alice in Wonderland. Tracks that are jazzy, funky, serious and light all laying a fantastic backdrop for her hard raps, vulnerable vocals, and her seamless shift between the two. My favorites off of this album are her poppy Picture Perfect, playful Shotgun with its melodic hook sung by Syd, Customz which features some wonderful vocals from Bibi Bourelly, and her harder Bad to the Bone again featuring Bibi Bourelly. I think I just really like Bourelly's melodic tones, especially in Juxtaposition to Simbi's signature voice and against Simz' talent for back beats. It was hard to pick my favorites on this album, as I enjoy most, if not all, of the tracks on this one.
Simz' third full album, GREY Area released in 2019, is her most vulnerable work yet with introspective look inward to herself. Instead of going to therapy, Simz would rather write it out and explore her feeling and thoughts through music, and I for one am glad she did. There is so much good stuff on this album with such a range of expressions, vibes, and sounds each song is a joy to listen to, but for different reasons. Venom is a hard-hitting track that starts off with horror movie soundtrack-esque strings and chronicles the struggle of being a woman in the industry ("They would never want to admit that I'm the best from the mere fact that I have ovaries" and "Never giving credit where credit is due 'cause you don't like pu**y in power") and her own internal ones ("Dealin with inner demons that won't leave...follow me, follow me, follow me/actually don't follow me, nobody bother me, I'm a mess, honestly...."). 101FM is a serious song about her start, her friend Ken, his going to prison, and the impact it had on her and her community. However, it's set to this poppy, Asian-inspired, background that evokes a strange sense of nostalgia, even though I didn't grow up with her or even in the same country as her (except the line "...playing PS2, Crash Bandicoot, Mortal Kombat..." which I can directly relate to). Selfish offers up gorgeous vocals by the very talented Cleo Sol and emphasizes the power she feels in being more confident in herself, "need more self loving...they wanna know you when you're buzzing, but first things first/ Number one and priority, call it what you want/doesn't phase doesn't bother me" and in sticking up for herself, "Until now I ain't ever told nobody no, don't get it twisted this sh** didn't happen overnight." Then you have the chill and easy to listen to Flowers featuring Micheal Kiwanuka that's soulful and passionate.
While I'd love to review all of her singles/mixtapes, I'm just going to do one more, or else this thing will be an hour-long read! My personal favorite is her 2014 release, E.D.G.E and has my all-time favorite song of hers, Bars Simzson on it. If you want an example of how much she is killing it I highly recommend you give this song a listen. Its lightening quick and exemplifies her raw talent, her flow, her precise speed and cadence, her playfulness, and seriousness all in one. That repetitive hook and deep bass is engaging and doesn't take away from her vocals. UGH. I never skip this song when it comes on and I really feel like a bad b**ch when I hit every word man. Its impressive work, to me anyway, and I always play it for anyone I think could get into her stuff. I also really dig the song Devour on this album. the ghost-like strings in the opening are haunting and eerie and then the piano sets you in this uneasy place, unsure where the track is going to go, then the drums/bass hits and the song takes off with those wispy strings popping up throughout. It reminds me of a roller coaster, with the easy turns and slow climb to the top that break up the downhill free falls.
I wish I knew how to express my musical thoughts a bit better to give you more of an understanding of the aspects I like about her music and had the right vocabulary to accurately talk about the more technical things...in some places I have no idea if I'm using the right terminology, so please feel free to educate me on anything I may have slipped up on. But hopefully those who know of her or decide to check her out will understand what I mean and appreciate the massive talent exuding from this exceptional woman!
**Photos are from her performance in Ireland 2018 as the opener for Gorillaz and taken by me**
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