EP 13 | Raven by Kelela (2023)
**late night / early morning release for the club queen herself**
Raven is for the rave bitches, club kids, and dance queens! Resonance and resilience fill Kelela's sound and perspective as she crafts an album shaped around the transformative symbolism of the Raven. Reflections of isolation and longing as a queer Black femme in the electronic music scene set the mood of this album as Kelela features this album as a response - to white business execs she’s cut ties with due to political misalignment, straight exes who have left her with the brunt of emotional labor, and non-Black dj’s who stifle the music scene leaving no room for people like Kelela. Other themes of the album include separation and awayness, boundary setting, sexual and personal empowerment, and most importantly, water. Amidst submersion, lies a refusal to submission. Sonically, she plays with electronic & dance music subgenres like jungle, drum n bass, downtempo, breakbeat, and classic EDM while staying grounded in RnB and soul roots. Singles released are “Washed Away,” “Happy Ending,” “On the Run,” “Contact,” and “Enough for Love.” Personal favorites are “Bruises,” “Closure,” “Contact”, “Happy Ending,” “Fooley,” and “Sorbet.”
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Articles mentioned are “Kelela Knows What Intimacy Sounds Like” by Hannah Giorgis (https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2023/03/kelela-interview-raven-album-review/673296/) and “The meditative, ambient calm of Kelela’s ‘Raven’” by Vrinda Jagota  (https://www.npr.org/2023/02/22/1158721846/kelela-raven-review)
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As always, episode is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts! Link in bio.