Adomaa muses on love gone wrong on “Gone”

Fit for an episode of Insecure.

It has been approximately two days since Adomaa delivered her deliciously soothing new single’“Gone” to us and the village of people living between my ears have found the perfect soundtrack to all their feels. With neo-soul and jazz being her forte, Adomma’s birthday gift to us, produced by newcomer Boye and mastered by Nova, is grounded in soulful piano chords with an underlying touch of Afrobeats.

The song starts out with a kick drum solo closely followed by the subtle introduction of piano chords setting the mood for the sultry vocals Adomaa serves.  For fear of missing a single beat, I’m suddenly sitting still, holding back the breath I’ve just drawn in because within seconds Adomaa is going to start singing and I don’t want to miss a single key change.

“Gone” recounts the story of a jilted lover, one whose epiphanies reflect a harrowing façade of a relationship grounded in lies. Detailing the progression of what she describes as the best of the worst she’s ever known, Adomaa in her signature falsetto, takes us on a journey of heartbreak and what it takes to come to terms with fuck niggatry.

There’s a certain groove to the entire arrangement that makes it quite befitting for an episode of HBO’s Insecure. Just when you think you can predict the progression of the song, Boye throws you for a loop. The simultaneous introduction of the maracas and the conga halfway through the first verse, subtly transforms the song into a brilliant mix of neo-soul and Afrobeats, with neither overpowering the other, extraordinary if you ask me.

Lyrically, it is reminiscent of ‘Love Galore’, as both songs tell a tale of a lover who puts a woman through the absolute darkest parts of the devil’s fiery butt crack, under the pretense of love. Adomaa’s you know you didn’t love me you should have left me alone bears the same message as SZA’s why you bother me when you know you don’t want me, making me wonder what the men of the world have been up to, nothing shy of being trash I presume.

Sonically, this song gives me hints of Pro J and Robin Thicke’s 2007 hit song, ‘Lost Without You’. With its own blend of the rattle sounds and piano chords falling right in line behind Thicke’s soulful falsetto, these two songs are definitely distant cousins to each other.

While Kidblack delivered a verse befitting of the subject matter, this song, just like DJ Khaled’s ‘Shining’ and Calvin Harris’ ‘Feels’, did not need a rap verse. The song is enough to carry its own weight and my sincere opinion is that it takes away from the complete vibe being delivered unto us.

I am thoroughly pleased by this song because it is a fusion of two interesting sounds and is yet another record pushing the boundaries of Ghanaian music as we know it.

Come through Adomaa!

Listen to “Gone” here.

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