Summer Walker’s new album is here, and we couldn’t be more obsessed.
We gave it a listen, and just like her previous project, Over It, her new album shows growth both sonically and story-wise. From beginning to end, Still Over It is a cohesive album that reveals a young girl in her 20s doing her best honestly and vulnerably. The album’s opener, ‘Bitter,’ which features narration from Cardi B, sets the tone, and the album closes with ‘Ciara’s Prayer,’ with narration from Ciara that wraps up the journey. Summer Walker is an artist whose short career has been riddled with rumors and controversies under the unforgiving eyes of the media and the internet. Still Over It reminds us of the girl beneath it all and presents us with resilience, clarity, and strength.
There’s no doubt that Summer Walker is one of the best new-generation R&B artists out there, and if you haven’t been paying attention, now’s the time to start!
The Opening
‘Bitter’ opens the album by confronting rumors about the break-up as Summer Walker opens up about her toxic relationship and how it affected her. When Cardi B closes the song with the outro, “Do it your own way and do it beautifully, do it special. If you are pregnant and everything, say it in a beautiful way in your music.” It’s clear that this album is not just going to be a simple break-up album.
It’s about expression, and healing, and telling your story.
The Beginning
The first part of the album throws us banger after banger with upbeat break-up anthem ‘Ex For A Reason’ with JT from City Girls, highly anticipated jam with SZA ‘No Love,’ and the Aaliyah-esque ‘Throw It Away.’
‘Reciprocate’ marks the beginning of the end of her relationship, where she laments, “All I wanted was for you to stay / It’s the bare minimum for me / I don’t wanna throw it all away / But you gon’ have to reciprocate.“
The Middle
From ‘You Don’t Know Me’ through ‘Closure,’ we’re taken on the ever-relatable journey of the back and forth that comes with the end of any type of relationship.
In ‘You Don’t Know Me,’ Walker’s smooth vocals juxtapose the very jagged, off-putting feeling of realizing someone you thought you were close to doesn’t know you that well after all. The simplicity of the guitar supporting the lyric ‘you don’t know me like I know you’ is raw and devastating.
Yet, it never feels like Summer loses control. On ‘Circus’ and ‘Insane,’ she’s confident and fun. In ‘Constant Bullsh*t,’ she owns up to her own flaws with verses like “But the truth is I was only trying to make it right / Even thought I might’ve been wrong in the way that I didn’t keep it private / Responding in the best way I knew.“
And on one of the album’s standouts, ‘Unloyal,’ with Ari Lennox, Walker explores new sounds vocally and sonically. All the while, the two singers’ styles mesh perfectly, creating a soulful, seamless collaboration.
The End
As the album comes to a close, Summer serves perhaps the most vulnerable records on the project.
‘Session 33’ is a short stream-of-consciousness that feels like a diary entry reflecting on a relationship that you know is dead. She sings, “You refuse to let me walk out your life / But you refuse to match up with my vibe / You keep wasting my time.“
‘4th Baby Mama’ feels like the most cathartic song on the album as she wraps up all of her frustrations with her ex. Even with the serene vibe of the song, the lyrics are biting and bluntly honest.
And by the time it all wraps up with Ciara’s passionate spoken-word prayer, you feel it all in your soul.
Stream Still Over It here and let us know what you think on Twitter @TheHoneyPop, or on Instagram and Facebook!
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Featured Image Source: Ro.Lexx/Interscope Records
