No stranger to composing poetic songs that offer deep insight into his personal life, backstory and current state of mind, the 15-track Still Love somehow finds a way to depict Simone in an entirely new light. While it continues an ongoing trend of pure, unadulterated authenticity present in his music, Still Love dances with the many faces of love, bringing to life the various ways "love" takes form in - and leaves - the life of the street prophet that is Raz Simone.
Throughout Still Love, Simone serves the listener with juxtaposed depictions of love and relationships, including intimate ones and those with his friends and family. Over the course of the project, he ties together the struggles of coupling love with his lifestyle, the various ways love can walk the fine line that separates real and illusion, the ever-present grapple of love and lust, and so much more. Despite the depth of Simone's lyricism, Still Love comes through with a heavy R&B influence, his words painting both painfully honest and beautifully uplifting depictions of love.
Simone does not have a singular style, nor can the man or his music be easily confined by any sort of clear-cut box or label. Perhaps the only way to truly define Raz in as few words as possible is real.
A wild contrast to last year's Closer, Still Love finds it's foundation in the light, airy instrumentation that serves as the backdrop to Simone's purposeful delivery. Based solely on the production, one gets a taste of how diverse Raz is - he can make trapped out, aggressive bangers intended to feed the clubs and streets, or he can piece together emotionally driven, uplifting ballads intended to provoke deep reflection and internal dialogue. Working closely with the various producers who helped bring Still Love to life, Simone was able to craft production for each track that serves to pull out of listeners the exact emotions his words do. The content of his prose truly dances hand-in-hand with the instrumentation, resulting in an astutely balanced project from start to finish.
Listening to Still Love, it's easy to grasp how important the album is to Raz. There's an energy present - one that is difficult to capture with words - that emanates from Simone's delivery, illuminating the sonic landscape of Still Love. The layers of pain, hurt, death, trial and triumph, success, shortcomings and leaps of faith that Still Love is built around move easily from Simone to the depth of the listener's psyche. With each change in cadence, with each rise and fall of the production, Still Love resonates at the core of those who sit with - and actively listen to - the album.
Still Love is available now on all major streaming platforms.
Preview the album below.
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