ImpressMeMuch Posted April 12 Posted April 12 10 minutes ago, Danai G said: That's true. At least it's guaranteed that we will get an EP. No way her label will delay this too... Forbidden Fruit will most likely be her next release. The snippets sound very promising and the teaser she posted on her discord seems stunning. yeah an EP is the right and smart move. Jesy would have probably been a better comparison as well, three years later following her misfire and hasn't recovered (tho iirc her second song wasn't under her label anymore? idrk). A "soft launch" for Leigh Anne is a smart move if it keeps her momentum!
Danai G Posted April 13 Posted April 13 2 hours ago, tbhmatt said: THIS IS GORGEOUS WTF Let's hope that she'll post a live performance of this version soon and maybe she'll release it on Spotify too. This song is amazing for an acoustic version 2
tbhmatt Posted April 13 Posted April 13 20 minutes ago, Danai G said: THIS IS GORGEOUS WTF Let's hope that she'll post a live performance of this version soon and maybe she'll release it on Spotify too. This song is amazing for an acoustic version A stripped back piano version available to stream would be most welcome, for sure 1
Cbreezy Posted April 13 Posted April 13 (edited) On 4/12/2024 at 10:23 PM, glitch said: Q1, especially January and February, is a favourite time for labels to push out flop albums due to the lack of competition. Just thinking recently, Years & Years last album and Zara's last couple. So it's not that unrealistic Sad as it is, this honestly feels like the best-case scenario. I felt Don't Say Love was cute and My Love remains the best thing she has done and honestly should have been her lead. Everything else has been meh. Like, listening to these teasers and it's hard to bat for her. I've always been of the belief in the "A&R hack" that the vast majority of artists seeking commercial success nowadays simply ought to listen to the top-selling/streaming songs in their region and ask themselves if their music would fit in if played in the middle of it. It doesn't have to mean making the exact same music as the top songs or compromising on quality, but it's a very easy means of measuring the commercial viability of what one is working on. None of these new song snippets I've heard (Stealin Love included) feel like they'd have any success in the UK nor particularly elevate her cause as a soloist (if looking beyond the charts). They sound like album tracks at best or rather aptly the type of music found on a Soundcloud artist's EP. Additionally, the UK doesn't have a particularly thriving R&B scene commercially (unfortunately), so I find it odd that Leigh seems to be anchoring her sound in very stripped-back middle-of-the-road R&B that at best sounds like dated 00s album tracks. It's very Tamera Foster / Bellah coded. Two very talented UK R&B girls, but perfect examples of dropping so-so material that doesn't exactly read the room of the region they're in. And that's before the other hurdles sadly still in front of them as Black artists in the UK in general. Leigh-Anne's case is so complex because all at once she IS talented, but has a limited vocal. As such, she ought to make music that doesn't call for vocal acrobatics or show her weak spots (in the way these new songs do e.g. straining). Something like My Love was perfect because in being dance and tempo-driven it actually put the spotlight on her strongest talent: performing. Wasting the solo debut hype on the mid DSL effectively TKO'd what was the better song. Now it's clear both she and the label aren't confident in the performance of the releases so far, are scrutinizing whatever material they have in the can, and came up with the EP idea. The EP is a nice palette cleanse but the material itself is not encouraging nor is she/her team really selling the vision of what the concept is about beyond "here are a bunch of songs that don't fit the direction of the album but mean a lot to me" (which to me really means either a) "we're starting from scratch, but here's something for now" OR b) "the good music is on an album that's already finished, but the label won't commit to releasing/funding it until I get some momentum...so here's an EP of "ok" songs to help that happen". Leigh's positioning of herself as an "artiste" who has "found" herself all feels a little pastiche and is pretty stereotypical from band member's post their time in the group. I mean this was pretty cringe: Here's probably the most worrying part. I totally feel like deflated now or not, Leigh-Anne is committed to pushing this all up a hill. Step by step, brick by brick. Songs, EPs, shows, the eventual album. BUT I just don't believe labels care to invest in acts they don't see quick returns from. Especially ex-band members who they probably signed with an expectation of an in-built audience and a certain base level of success. Even if down to cut the necessary cheques, it's a ruthless business and a label would sooner spend on a 23-year-old Tyla than they would a 30-something Leigh-Anne from Little Mix (who, come next year, will have broken up 3+ years ago). So, I have serious reservations if the label actually plan to release the album rather than surface-satisfying their contract with Leigh-Anne by dropping this EP (which technically functions as a "project") and then...dropping her. I hope not, though. I'm rooting for all the LM girls, but I can already tell the inevitable Perrie success with her Pop-y lead will (for those who make the mistake of seeing music and the music business as some kind of meritocracy) will feed the false narrative that all that matters is the song. When in reality, in addition to everything I wrote above, Leigh is also having to navigate a lot as a Black/Brown woman in a business that mandates she has to work 10x as hard for a fraction of the success. To help her own cause, I hope whatever is coming **after** this EP (because the snippets so far do nothing for me) is tempo-driven, catchy af, vocally relaxed, and ideally has features that can help her on streaming. Edited April 13 by Cbreezy 4 2
The Slayer Posted April 13 Posted April 13 6 hours ago, tbhmatt said: She sounds great, I just wish she was releasing better music. None of the snippets she has shared sound good to me, however I'll obviously wait until we get the full songs. Also @Cbreezy said everything so perfectly and absolutely spot on! 1
Danai G Posted April 14 Posted April 14 7 hours ago, Cbreezy said: Sad as it is, this honestly feels like the best-case scenario. I felt Don't Say Love was cute and My Love remains the best thing she has done and honestly should have been her lead. Everything else has been meh. Like, listening to these teasers and it's hard to bat for her. I've always been of the belief in the "A&R hack" that the vast majority of artists seeking commercial success nowadays simply ought to listen to the top-selling/streaming songs in their region and ask themselves if their music would fit in if played in the middle of it. It doesn't have to mean making the exact same music as the top songs or compromising on quality, but it's a very easy means of measuring the commercial viability of what one is working on. None of these new song snippets I've heard (Stealin Love included) feel like they'd have any success in the UK nor particularly elevate her cause as a soloist (if looking beyond the charts). They sound like album tracks at best or rather aptly the type of music found on a Soundcloud artist's EP. Additionally, the UK doesn't have a particularly thriving R&B scene commercially (unfortunately), so I find it odd that Leigh seems to be anchoring her sound in very stripped-back middle-of-the-road R&B that at best sounds like dated 00s album tracks. It's very Tamera Foster / Bellah coded. Two very talented UK R&B girls, but perfect examples of dropping so-so material that doesn't exactly read the room of the region they're in. And that's before the other hurdles sadly still in front of them as Black artists in the UK in general. Leigh-Anne's case is so complex because all at once she IS talented, but has a limited vocal. As such, she ought to make music that doesn't call for vocal acrobatics or show her weak spots (in the way these new songs do e.g. straining). Something like My Love was perfect because in being dance and tempo-driven it actually put the spotlight on her strongest talent: performing. Wasting the solo debut hype on the mid DSL effectively TKO'd what was the better song. Now it's clear both she and the label aren't confident in the performance of the releases so far, are scrutinizing whatever material they have in the can, and came up with the EP idea. The EP is a nice palette cleanse but the material itself is not encouraging nor is she/her team really selling the vision of what the concept is about beyond "here are a bunch of songs that don't fit the direction of the album but mean a lot to me" (which to me really means either a) "we're starting from scratch, but here's something for now" OR b) "the good music is on an album that's already finished, but the label won't commit to releasing/funding it until I get some momentum...so here's an EP of "ok" songs to help that happen". Leigh's positioning of herself as an "artiste" who has "found" herself all feels a little pastiche and is pretty stereotypical from band member's post their time in the group. I mean this was pretty cringe: Here's probably the most worrying part. I totally feel like deflated now or not, Leigh-Anne is committed to pushing this all up a hill. Step by step, brick by brick. Songs, EPs, shows, the eventual album. BUT I just don't believe labels care to invest in acts they don't see quick returns from. Especially ex-band members who they probably signed with an expectation of an in-built audience and a certain base level of success. Even if down to cut the necessary cheques, it's a ruthless business and a label would sooner spend on a 23-year-old Tyla than they would a 30-something Leigh-Anne from Little Mix (who, come next year, will have broken up 3+ years ago). So, I have serious reservations if the label actually plan to release the album rather than surface-satisfying their contract with Leigh-Anne by dropping this EP (which technically functions as a "project") and then...dropping her. I hope not, though. I'm rooting for all the LM girls, but I can already tell the inevitable Perrie success with her Pop-y lead will (for those who make the mistake of seeing music and the music business as some kind of meritocracy) will feed the false narrative that all that matters is the song. When in reality, in addition to everything I wrote above, Leigh is also having to navigate a lot as a Black/Brown woman in a business that mandates she has to work 10x as hard for a fraction of the success. To help her own cause, I hope whatever is coming **after** this EP (because the snippets so far do nothing for me) is tempo-driven, catchy af, vocally relaxed, and ideally has features that can help her on streaming. Very interesting comment, indeed. But I'd like to point out something: Leigh-Anne is clearly following a different direction compared to what she did with Little Mix. Of course she wouldn't release pop songs like the ones she used to sing. She's going to release the songs she wants to and it's clear that this is the sound that makes her happy. However, I totally agree with you about R&B and Afro being unpopular in UK. This is another reason why I believe that her team should ditch the UK market and focus on building a bigger fanbase in US Or Brazil, where these sounds will be appreciated more. As for the EP and the album, my thoughts are pretty much the same as yours. While I really like the material so far and the snippets sound good, they are not remarkable enough and I unfortunately cannot see how they'll help her gain a new audience, especially if they are not promoted. This project is a very good idea as I already said, since it will provide fans with more music and (hopefully) make even a few more people interested in her but overall, I cannot see any of the songs creating a big momentum. What worries me right now is if we're even going to get an album next year. Because Leigh-Anne had mentioned that the album would had come this year but it's clear that right now her label is not going to invest in her, especially if they see no profits from that. Unfortunately this is how the industry works nowadays and we should just deal with it. Let's hope that the material of the EP will be good enough (I like the visuals so far) and that her team will try to promote her more. Leigh-Anne is signed to TAP Music who are known for caring about their artists so I expect them to book her for more solo shows and keep her in the public eye. 1
tbhmatt Posted April 14 Posted April 14 I do agree that none of her music so far has really fit the mould of what is commercially successful in the UK right now; the closest she's come is with My Love but I feel that underperformed due to a combination of wasted hype after Don't Say Love and a disconnect with the target audience of the afrobeats genre, there was a lot of conversation online at the time the song/video dropped where she was heavily criticised for wearing an "aesthetic" and that it didn't come across as authentic. Personally, I wouldn't want her to compromise her own vision or taste in her own music just to release generic radio fodder for the sake of getting a hit. That does mean, however, that if she is intent on cementing herself in this RnB sound she does realistically need to adjust her expectations for commercial success as it's already been discussed that there isn't a thriving RnB scene here in the UK… but I feel like the little mix solo projects would be absolutely wasted if they all went down the generic radio hit/DJ collab route just for the sake of scoring a cheap commercial hit. The thing that most excited me about the Little Mix solo projects was the prospect of having three individual projects that hone in on their own musical lanes, show us an individual identity we didn't get to see from them as a group and allow them to thrive in their own spaces. Leigh with R&B, Perrie with pop rock and Jade with dance pop was my ideal result from solo mix. All different genres, giving them each their own space to flex their own creativity and showcase them as individuals. Personally I have enjoyed all of her solo releases so far to varying degrees, but I do understand the criticisms here. As a fan of course I want her to see commercial success, but the most important thing to me is that she is releasing music that she is genuinely passionate about and reflects who she is as a solo artist and how she wants to be received. Now naturally, that isn't going to connect with every single Little Mix fan - and that's ok! Like I said, the whole point of these solo adventures were to find their own sound and their own audience. For every Little Mix fan that doesn't enjoy a Leigh-Anne RnB cut, there'll be one who loves a Perrie song, and for everyone who doesn't love Perrie's music, there'll be one who loves Jade's music etc.. There will be varying levels of success amongst the three of them, but as long as they're all consistently releasing music that allows them to carve out an identity and find an audience *somewhere* I'll be happy for them. As for the quality of her upcoming music, I'll reserve any judgement until we've actually heard the tracks. I didn't *love* the Forbidden Fruit snippet but we've not heard the full thing yet, and we've heard nothing of the other three tracks either so for all we know there might be a smash waiting in the wings. 1
Danai G Posted April 15 Posted April 15 3 minutes ago, The Slayer said: Maybe a new thread for it? Hmmm yeah. Maybe someone could make a new thread for the whole EP in general
The Slayer Posted April 15 Posted April 15 5 minutes ago, Danai G said: Hmmm yeah. Maybe someone could make a new thread for the whole EP in general I made an EP one last month
Danai G Posted April 15 Posted April 15 5 minutes ago, The Slayer said: I made an EP one last month Oh, okay. Then if people want to, they can use this thread since the discussion will be about the whole EP.
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