In today’s age, technology has flooded our lives with content. Caught in the mire are modern musicians who champion an art form that’s more widely distributed than any other throughout human history. And we, more often than not, overlook the music created by unfamiliar faces because it’s challenging. We’d rather have an easy listen, a known quantity to skim through while we think about something else.
Hearing is easy, but listening is difficult. Welcome to “Why We Like It”, where we rebuke the trends in favor of thoughtful analysis and underknown sounds.
“Jealous” – Khamari
Listen On:
How We Found It
Khamari wrote and recorded his debut single in his bedroom last year and brought it to Trackside, who he’s been friends with for a while, to help finish the production. Khamari says Trackside seemed to know exactly what the song needed to be ready to release. The songwriting and the vocals though, that’s all Khamari as he sounds confident, seasoned, but also at ease. His smooth new single was submitted to our official CentralSauce SubmitHub page.
Why We Like It
Khamari sings, “Find myself caught in the loop makin the same moves for so long.” The funny thing is that whether we are in a quarantine or in the life pace we are accustomed to, patience is always difficult. Life can always feel stagnated as we are trying to move forward and it just doesn’t feel like it’s happening quickly enough.
Khamari said his lyrics weren’t meant to represent the COVID imposed social distance but I found that it was more than coincidence that lead me to emphasize with the heartfelt expression of isolation. The ability to interpret art through personal experience is one of the best things about music. Through the gentle crooning of Khamari’s “Jealous” we get to compare the variety of “loops” we process and how they affect us differently.
“Jealous” seems to express Khamari’s continual grind to make something of himself in music. He gets envious of his friends who he sees enjoying their youth and partying and meeting women. But he knows he is too locked into what he wants with his art to sacrifice his time. My favorite lyric of the song is when Khamari sings, “Mama said shut your eyes enjoy the ride, cuz nothing good ever happens overnight.” Is there anything better in this world than calming motherly support. I have one of those kinds of mom’s too. The meditative encouragement of a mother helps you with your priorities and tranquility in an unmatched way.
Trackside’s production on the song is so clean. The smooth guitar entry immediately mellows you out. Then the song really starts at the 00:57 mark when the drums and layered guitar come in. Each addition is minimal yet effective. The drums drive the song, but don’t force it. The second guitar floats above the composition like a seagull on a secluded beach.
The song runs at a short 2:08 and is condensed solely for quality. There is not a vocal or instrumental choice that feels like it extends even slightly too long. The point is made and you want to hit the repeat button. Khamari made his first single before the world flipped, but still the feeling he wanted to evoke is right where I’m at when I listen in a new context.
From Khamari
To me “Jealous” kind of gives me that lonely stoner feeling you can get from listening to Kid Cudi. I just think it’s relatable in the same way cause we all have those thoughts and being stuck in that headspace. That was how the concept was born.” – Khamari for CentralSauce 2020
More From Khamari
If you like what you heard follow Khamari on Spotify, SoundCloud, Twitter, and/ or Instagram. While this is his first official single he has much more on the way!
More to Discover
Subscribe to the CentralSauce mailing list so you never miss out on the freshest sauce. Check out this continuously updated playlist of songs Miki has added to our Discovery section! Each track or artist has been featured in our “Why We Like It” section, so be sure to check out the page here on the site.
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