Welcome to And Our Influences
Happy Monday — glad to have you! I hope you enjoyed last week’s album, Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel. If you missed it, click here.
Watching the Grammys at the moment. Kendrick just opened his mouth! In my opinion, GNX is Kendrick’s second-best album of all time… But, I love all of them. For example, “Father Time” was my most-streamed song two years ago. What was the name of that guy who sang the chorus? Oh yeah!
You’ll automatically connect with this LP if you enjoy:
Frank Ocean’s Blonde
Bon Iver or Blood Orange
Themes of grief (morbid)
Interesting voices
R&B (RIP D’Angelo)
Let’s put your music taste to work.
This week’s album is…
Process - Sampha
Released February 3rd, 2017
Electronic R&B | 10 songs | 40 minutes |
Overview
This album has traveled from London, England, to peaking at #51 on the US Billboard 200, to your inbox!
“Dude, I promise, you know Sampha.” - me, once a month, probably.
Sampha is best known for his incredibly memorable features on rap songs over the past 15 years. Here are a few examples:
“Too Much” - Drake (“Don’t think about it too much, too much, too much, too much”)
“Saint Pablo” - Kanye West (“You’re lookin’ at the church in the night sky. Wonderin’ when God’s gonna say hi.”)
“Father Time” - Kendrick Lamar (“Early morning wake ups, practicing on day offs, tough love, bottled up, no chaser, neat”)
See, you know Sampha, unless you are an old head (respectfully!). But Process will most likely not be what you’re expecting. There are no rap features. Just these intimate, vulnerable piano/electronic tracks.
The album sounds like grief. It's about Sampha's mother dying from cancer, processing that loss while also reckoning with his own identity as an artist. The production reflects that emotional state, with stripped-down, minimalist artistic choices.
The album turns what you’d think about Sampha on its head. For me, he went from random “Ty Dolla $ign” type well-connected singer to flat-out genius. Hoping you feel the same!
DISCLAIMER: This is NOT my favorite Sampha album! If this is a bit too mellow for your liking, PLEASE check out his 2024 album, Lahai.
Wow. He sounds IDENTICAL to the recording.