You ever hear a music and instantly assume, “Oh yeah, this one’s about to be in all places?” That’s precisely how I felt the primary time I heard “Neglect About You”, the newest single from American Idol alums Ajii and Wé Ani. It’s moody, it’s vibey, and it’s obtained that excellent mixture of heartbreak and swagger that makes for a very unforgettable breakup anthem.
Ajii, who wowed audiences on Idol Season 22 along with his genre-blending performances, groups up with Wé Ani, who made waves in Season 21 (and The Voice earlier than that). Collectively, they’ve created one thing particular—a monitor that’s catchy, emotional, and stuffed with replay worth.
First issues first, let’s discuss concerning the manufacturing. This music knocks. Producer Alex Poeppel offers us a slick, fashionable beat infused with what Ajii described as a Jersey membership power, which makes it unattainable to sit down nonetheless whereas listening. The pulsing rhythm and layered melodies make it a kind of tracks that really feel recent but in addition timeless—you might hear it enjoying in a dimly lit membership, in a automobile at night time, or via your AirPods whereas staring dramatically out the window.
And let’s not ignore the hook. At some point I, I’ll overlook about you… It’s easy, it’s hypnotic, and it’s going to be caught in your head for days. There’s one thing concerning the repetition that feels virtually therapeutic, like chanting it sufficient occasions will truly make the heartbreak fade away. (Spoiler: It received’t, however it will make you are feeling cooler whereas coping with it.)
Ajii’s verse is available in easy however heavy, setting the tone for the emotional push and pull of the music. His traces—
“I don’t wanna discuss with no one
And stroll with no one
They obtained nothing on you…”
—hit deep as a result of we’ve all been there. That post-breakup stage the place everybody else simply feels meh compared to the one particular person you’ll be able to’t shake? Yeah, that.
Then Wé Ani is available in and utterly adjustments the power. If Ajii’s verse is sulking in heartbreak, Wé’s is straight-up calling it out.
“As I recall, I used to be your Barbie doll
Confirmed me off and all
Blood and all…”
Whew. She snaps on this verse. You may really feel the frustration, the exhaustion, the I’m-so-over-this-but-also-maybe-not. Her supply is sharp and exact, including a fiery distinction to Ajii’s smoothness. It’s the type of back-and-forth dynamic that makes you are feeling such as you’re eavesdropping on a real-life dialog between two exes who nonetheless have somewhat an excessive amount of to say.
After which, simply while you assume the music has mentioned the whole lot it must, that third verse brings each voices collectively in probably the most obsessive, poisonous, and sincere manner doable:
“Want you after I’m on that rum
You already know I’m one for one
I would like you unhealthy like a lung
Child I don’t breathe for enjoyable…”
It’s messy, it’s dramatic, and it’s actual.
It wouldn’t be shocking if this music blows up on TikTok the identical manner different Idol alums like Francisco Martin have leveraged the app-based platform to achieve large audiences. It’s the proper mixture of earworm melodies and relatable feelings that make songs stick in right this moment’s streaming-heavy world.
Ajii and Wé Ani are proving that you simply don’t must win American Idol to win within the music trade. Their voices are dynamic, their chemistry is simple, and Neglect About You is precisely the type of monitor that may catapult them to the following stage.
So should you haven’t listened but—what are you ready for? Flip it up, sing alongside, and should you’ve obtained an ex lingering in your head, nicely… this would possibly simply be the music that lastly helps you overlook about them.
Mindy McCall
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