SassyBlack, a “hologram funk and psychedelic soul” artist, just dropped her 16th project since 2015 that is dripping with nothing but gold. Taking us to a new planet where all things sound omnipotent, SassyBlack manifests an album that is as celestial as the body that produced it.
Unfolding Ancient Mahogany Gold, “Left or Right” expresses the choices we make when creating our own destinies. Black states, “steering clear of affection for my own protection,” speaking to a lot of us “independent” people who are choosing to wait for love or too afraid to take the leap. She calls for direction, realizing there’s no one to call and all decisions are her own.
This independence remains unabating as she melodically hums along in songs like “Forward Thinking,” “Do It,” and “Black Excellence.”
“Forward Thinking” taunts as Black proclaims, “can’t let you get in front of me,” layered on top of uptempo, anxious production that will take you to the edge. The music mimics a race, motivating the listener to move and keep pushing forward in this tournament called life.
That is, until life throws obstacles in the way, like love. On “Do it,” she talks temptation. Ironic to the title, Black fights the urge to fall in love throughout the song. As she goes back and forth between longing and resistance, the song works to do everything opposite of the title, repeating “I won’t fall for ya.” She comes to the conclusion the only thing she can do is look but not touch, because her self love is more valuable.
Black’s self love quickly becomes the remedy to her pain on “Antidote.” Demanding the love to continue and for the hatred to stop, “Antidote” talks on respect and self appreciation. She chants over and over, “don’t stop the love.” Black uses her music to revolutionize the hate that some of us become clouded in. She clears the fog, reminding us to self love and appreciate.
With self-appreciation comes the love of your skin. In mine and Black’s case, that skin is black. To seal the album, Sassy talks about her “Black Excellence,” giving a history lesson for all who are unaware of where this skin came from. She sarcastically states, “did you know black people are everywhere,” promulgating her notion of celestialism: she is godly, her skin is godly, and her sound is godly.
Ancient Mahogany Gold is filled with celestial melodies and messages. Giving the audience lessons in life, love, and independence, SassyBlack has birthed an album of pure gold.
Ancient Mahogany Gold
One comment
Comments are closed.