Little Simz - Lotus

Brit and Mercury award winning, Islington-born rapper Simbiatu Abisola Abiola Ajikawo aka Little Simz has released her sixth album. Produced by Miles Clinton James with innovative string arrangements by Rosie Danvers, ‘Lotus’ is an eclectic mix of hip-hop songs traversing funk, rock, Latin rhythms, soul and jazz, enhanced by engaging storytelling. The album explores deeply personal themes of betrayal and resilience, following an acrimonious break-up with Little Simz’s former producer. Highlights of the thirteen-track collection include: the opener, explosive ‘Thief' with its distorted guitar riffs and biting, accusatory chorus: ”Thief/And you know what it means/… Selling lies, selling dreams”; ritualistic ‘Flood’, featuring Moonchild Sanelly and Obongjayar; the playful ‘Young’: jazz and Latino-beat inflected ‘Only’; ‘Free’ with its defiant lines of resilience; the haunting spoken-word piece ‘Hollow’ with its delicate string accompaniment starkly counterpointing the in-your-face lyrics: “They love bomb you to start, then/Cuff you by the heart, then/Watch you fall apart, then”; ‘Blood’ with a searing emotive interplay between Little Simz and Wretch 32 and a resonating chorus by Cashh; the layered, powerful, epic title track, featuring Michael Kiwanuka and Yussef Dayes, with its powerful message of rebirth after pain; sparse, piano- and beat-led ‘Lonely’, accentuating the vulnerability in the lyrics: “Tryna make an album means baring my whole truth/Unpacking the fuckery I’m trying to heal through/Imagine telling it all to somebody you trust/Then that same somebody then holds it against you”; and the album closer ‘Blue’ with Little Simz’s lines on overcoming despair and detachment neatly complemented by Sampha’s expressive vocals. Impressionistic, authentic, at times achingly raw, ‘Lotus’ is an adventurous, experimental album which leaves the listener wanting more.