Since celebrating her return to the music scene last September with the release of her sweet-sounding single “Shower Me”, Nigerian singer and songwriter Lola Rae has adopted a less-is-more philosophy. After a long hiatus from releasing any solo work, the singer has been meticulously rolling out her new music and visuals without any rush, allowing listeners to stay up-to-date with each release from her camp with rapt attention.

Her latest single, the P2J-produced “Come And See Me” is an uptempo romantic affair that finds the singer promising her undying devotion and affection to a love interest while ensuring that their flame and physical intimacy never dwindles.

 

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Over groovy percussive rhythms and a catchy drum patterns, she sings “When you rock my body, I go teach you something/Shey you want this body, make you warm this engine” on the song’s first verse, as she places herself on the menu and seductively lists out all the ways she wants to be physically entangled with the man of her dreams. Audaciously owning her body and her sexuality, she doesn’t shy away from her salacious desires.

Throughout the track, Lola Rae sings about the normality of these sexual feelings and implores listeners to also unabashedly honour their intimate desires. The accompanying video for “Come And See” is a lush visual feast with vibrant colours, sexy outfits, and even complete with a romantic beau for the singer. We see clips of Lola Rae performing her verse while dancing in a lush green garden and by the seaside while showing off her killer dance moves and soaking in the warmth of her love interest. It’s everything we’d expect from the singer and dancer whose self-confidence is growing at an exponential rate since the release of last year’s “Shower Me”.

Alongside the video release today, we had a sit down with Lola Rae to talk about her new music, what she’s learnt so far as an artist, a mother, and a woman and what’s next for her this year. Our chat, which follows below, has been lightly edited for clarity

NATIVE:  It’s been a few months since you made your big comeback to the scene with “Shower Me”, how has it all been since then?

LOLA RAE: It has definitely been a few months since “Shower Me”. It’s been going great and I am filled with gratitude about everything. The UK has been in lockdown but I’ve still been able to be productive and be in the studio with P2J, Tay Iwar and so many other talented people. I have basically completed my upcoming project and it sounds absolutely unbelievable. I think it is going to shock a lot of people because of how diverse the sound is on there.

NATIVE: Your latest two releases have a distinct sound – even though you’ve worked with two different producers – which marks a point of evolution for your sound. How would you say you have evolved as a person and an artist since your entry into the industry? 

LOLA RAE: There has definitely been a change in my sound. When I first started doing music, the first few records that I released in that era were my first ever time in a studio and we just put them out just to see what would happen. I never expected anything to come of it, but God was so amazing, and now, it’s been such a long time and I’ve developed. I know what music I like and what sounds I like and more about music. Naturally, there has been an evolution because as a person, I have changed, I have experienced and I have learnt.

NATIVE: You seem to be leaning towards more dance-ready beats with recent releases, has this been a deliberate shift?

LOLA RAE: I love to dance and I danced before I ever made music. I used to be a dancer so naturally, I gravitate to music that makes me move. Even back in the day, growing up, when my dad would play his funk records, those were the records I was drawn to more than the slow ballads. Plus, I’m a performer so I’m always going to make music that makes me dance. I think it’s going to be very shocking for fans to discover that on my project, we secured some major dance bangers. I’ve been through some things so I have a lot to say and we’ve put it into different genres and sounds of music.

NATIVE: In the lyrics of your recent songs and also from your striking visuals as well, you seem to have really come into your own as a woman, what would you say is the driving force behind that? 

LOLA RAE: I have definitely come into my own as a woman. I think naturally as times goes on, you know yourself more and you are confident in your skin. I had a beautiful daughter which definitely taught me a lot about womanhood and being a mother. I just know myself more and that oozes into my lyrics. Whereas before I was so shy, I’m now unapologetic in all my dealings. Now, I don’t really care anymore.

NATIVE: What’s the inspiration behind your latest release “Come And See”, and how did the song come about? 

LOLA RAE: My latest single “Come And See” is such a special song. I think that the feeling it emotes is just crazy. I did that song with P2J, who has actually recorded most of the songs on my upcoming project. However, when we did this song, it was my very first time in the studio with him and so everything about this song is special. I just knew that I wanted to show who I had become; now, I own my sexuality and I own myself and I know myself and I want to make other women feel sexy and embrace the skin they are in. I think in Africa, we are told to be modest and coy and women don’t get to feel as sexy, I just really wanted to show that they deserve to feel good.

NATIVE: On Instagram, you described your new video as ‘a sweet watch’, what were you aiming to communicate with the video of “Come And See”? 

LOLA RAE: I think all my videos are a sweet watch because I am a performer and I am going to perform my ass off and make sure I keep my audience entertained. That is always the essence of a Lola Rae video or a performance. I always want to entertain and I want people to see something different while pushing the boundaries. I am a natural performer, this has always been my thing.

NATIVE: The styling is also quite strong and we can spot a few statement pieces already, how much input do you have to how you look in the videos? 

LOLA RAE: Koko the Don is the stylist for this video and she is incredible. All the pieces you see were shipped in from another country and everything got lost in the post at a point and we found out all this the night before the video. She ended up pulling things from her wardrobe and she was literally creating on me, cutting off dresses and making them two pieces that fit me. She’s simply amazing. I also have major involvement in my style because I know what I want to communicate. For so long, I didn’t but now I know how I want to be received so I am majorly involved in that.

Featured image credits/LolaRae

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