Together with his breathy voice on the middle of our consideration, Rocky Dawuni launches right into a gentle lyrical intro in his new single “Shade Tree” that simply may take listeners abruptly in the event that they’re acquainted with his complete physique of labor. Though Dawuni’s music has had a lush high quality to it to date, that is the primary observe that feels intentionally dreamy, like a surreal pose that was meant to check its designer in each manner potential. He pushes himself and the harmonies on this single to the brink and comes again to the highlight trying like one of many extra creative gamers to emerge out of the Ghanaian underground within the final couple of years. “Shade Tree” was simply the observe to highlight his versatility, and what he’s turning into early on in his profession.

Dawuni’s supply of the verses remains to be quick and fluid however a bit of extra reserved right here than it needed to be, more likely to enhance the strain within the tune’s key moments of cathartic launch. The refrain isn’t the lone component of kinship he’s creating on this piece, however as a substitute, the linchpin holding collectively the bands of melodic ribbonry his vocal is driving atop. There’s potential to insert a psychedelic bend to this template in a remix, however even because it stands on this model, “Shade Tree” has a cerebral element that makes it appear as if we’re listening to somebody’s inside dialogue versus the ravings of a singer in a pop single.

The devices right here couldn’t get any less complicated, however the association itself is fairly spectacular and relatively advanced. The tempo feels prefer it’s shifting always regardless of Dawuni clinging to a fairly constant groove from begin to end, and this in flip helps to drag us nearer to the friction within the observe than we’d have been in a much less hands-on combine. “Shade Tree” someway highlights essentially the most endearing options in barebones and surreal pop songwriting within the melodic reggae subgenre with out sounding like its narrative is cut up into two distinct acts, and if this tune construction made its manner onto a future launch bearing this artist’s title within the byline, it wouldn’t shock me in any respect. Duality is all the things in at this time’s reggae recreation, and this participant has it in the easiest way.

It’s been a whirlwind yr for Rocky Dawuni, and if this single sees the identical type of success that his final couple of studio cuts have, he’s going to turn out to be one of many extra justifiably hyped singers in all the underground in 2023. He’s enhancing his lyrical charisma considerably right here and making it in order that we’re not in a position to break down the story he’s telling with out contemplating all the things from the backdrop to the tempo of the verses he’s slinging at us with ease. Being detail-oriented used to get numerous younger gamers in reggae tripped up lengthy earlier than their time to shine ever got here into focus, however this can be a chapter in historical past by which Rocky Dawuni goes to make use of compositional intricacies to rise via the ranks and take over his scene.

Mindy McCall