Love was of course in the air this week, and a special treat came from Rai Smith out of Hollis, Queens. The 23-year-old released 9-track EP Songs For Her 2, a follow up to his previous effort that came three years prior. The unsigned artist set out to cover all sides of love, good and bad, and that holistic experience is accurately depicted.
The intro “Ever Will” hits hard (literally, the bass is nuts) before leading into “Love At First Flight” where the repetitive “I can’t wait to see you” forces itself into your mind, along with possibly sparking some thoughts about someone, in particular, you wanna see. “No Romance” picks the energy up and steps away from the crooning as we enter the strip club. No romance, just throw that thang back for the one time. “I don’t want no romance, I just wanna see you pole dance.” Big mood.
“Don’t Stop” is a bedroom anthem, though more upbeat than one may expect. Then again, if that’s how you roll then it’s perfect. “Baby don’t be nervous, be yourself, just relax.” Hahaha yeah, this line is the one. Very smooth though. Gotta let things just happen and stop overthinking. “Playa Playa” slows things down again but he repeats the encouragement of not being nervous. This time, because the lady he’s with is concerned about him being a player. So he’s gotta break down her apprehension and then seal the deal. A challenge, but the right vocals always help a bit.
“Still My” is the ride or die anthem. No matter what, he’ll be there. He just hopes he doesn’t crash. “On A Beach” captures all of our dreams of some sandy intercourse. And the outro “Go The Distance” puts the cap on a bottle of fine wine with obvious potential to only get better over time. His ability to create versatile melodies, in conjunction with the elaborate production is impressive. It never feels like one part overpowers the other, though there are many layers to his beats. There’s a lot of upside to this artist, being so young and so capable already. I’m always in NYC so perhaps I’ll be able to catch a show.
For now, you all can streams Songs For Her 2 by Rai Smith below.