Rich Brian’s swooning vocals and gentle synths and strings on “Little Ray of Light” creep up on you—in a good way
Can we all collectively agree that the drought is truly, finally over?
Indonesian artist Rich Brian is ultimately returning with his third full-length album “Where Is My Head?” on May 23—his first since 2019’s “The Sailor.”
And along with it is the arrival of his new single “Little Ray of Light” where Rich Brian does something forward-thinking: reimagining his voice as a vehicle for expression.
“How can I continue to make music that I love more than anything else?” he asks in a release. He most likely answers that rhetorical question on “Where Is My Head?” but he hints at his evolution, too, in the first single.
Backed by analog instrumentation, quiet synths, and a music video that sees the 25-year-old artist trapped in an enclosed playground with what appears to be a woman he loves (or once loved), Rich Brian sings in a sadness-soaked delivery: “The little ray of light from the sky is fadin’ by the minute” as if waiting to muster enough courage to move on.
“Sometimes you cause me some pain, sometimes I lie to your face / But you know me, I’ll stay for years and hope that it change”
They both try to dance, swing, and eat their way out of the indifference but the chinks continue to show. In the end, Rich Brian (and his conductor character) realizes that it is time to let go—down an escape hatch he spots.
Wherever this getaway leads him is anyone’s guess but one thing is for sure: Wistfulness suits Rich Brian well and though it might be a departure from his earlier discography, “Little Ray of Light” is the sound of an artist pushing his way through the silence of the last three years
“I’m way too high for your love, I’m way too high for your touch, I can’t be there when you drown”
Wherever this getaway leads him is anyone’s guess but one thing is for sure: Wistfulness suits Rich Brian well and though it might be a departure from his earlier discography, “Little Ray of Light” is the sound of an artist pushing his way through the silence of the last three years.
Watch “Little Ray of Light” here:
