The Plug’n Play: March (‘23)
April 3, 2023
You can listen to the full playlist on Apple Music, Spotify, or Tidal
The Monthly Roundup:
Throughout the month, Kevin and I select some of our favorite releases. In a lot of ways, this playlist — The Plug’n Play — is an extension of our text thread where we send new music to each other throughout the month. We hope you dig it! Songs 1-17 were selected by me, Stanley. Songs 17-33 were selected by Kevin. As always, we hope you find a song you like and check out the larger body of work (and don’t put the playlist on shuffle!). Here are a few highlights from the month:
Imagine — Black Buttafly
On Wednesday, March 15th, I got the chance to photograph Black Buttafly’s single-release party. Black Buttafly, born Kayla Childs, featured her new single, Imagine, along with a few other tunes from her forthcoming project; a wonderful mix of her backgrounds with Jazz and Gospel musics alongside her love for J Dilla and Hip-Hop, more broadly. Having watched Black Buttafly in an ensemble context or in support of other artists, it’s exciting to see her pushing her solo work. I’m looking forward to the project! Here are a few photos from the night:
Dumpalltheguns — Adi Oasis
Lotus Glow, Adi Oasis’ most recent album, is another exciting installment in the artists discography. Rooted in 70s Soul musics, Adi Oasis’ voice is as sharp as ever, her songwriting clear and poignant, and it’s all done while not expending the inescapable grooves she’s come to be known for. Set to the sound of a tight backbeat, Clavinet, and a spacious, to-the-point bass line (she sounds most like legendary bassist, Chuck Rainey here), on Dumpalltheguns Adi Oasis sings of the contradictions of the penal system, while also taking into account the specter of violence against Black people. This is undeniably one of my favorite albums from the year so far!
wait, hol’ up — B.R.K.
In early March, I got the chance to speak with B.R.K. about his new single, wait, hol’ up. When we talked, I learned that, though B.R.K.’s been releasing music for the better part of the past decade, he’s still venturing into new worlds. This time, it’s production; another tool in his ever-expanding toolbox for telling stories. And, to little surprise, he’s damn good at it, too! Also, this is probably my most listened to song from the month (I’m sure Spotify has data on this somewhere).
