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You know you are in for something good the moment that Oakland singer Freddie\u2019s voice comes in on their EP opener \u201cOblivion.\u201d Later in the song, their rich, evocative voice moves to deliver that ever-elusive diva wish: \u201cI wanna be adored by ya\/I wanna be adored by everyone.\u201d It almost sounds slurred, or mumbled into a collar. But nothing is truly that sloppy in the world of Melanin Monroe<\/i>, where songs switch from rap to R&B to soul with the gleeful precision of a gymnast changing grip on the uneven bars. \u201cOblivion\u201d retains its glam, R&B sensuality, even as Freddie runs through rapid, breathless bars in the rap outro. The enunciation may not be perfection, but I don\u2019t think that\u2019s the goal here – Freddie’s aim is to keep the listener on their toes at every turn.<\/p>\n

The R&B and soul genres easily lend themselves to expand into adjacent styles, whether rap or something else, but rarely is the mix ever this playful or deft in balance, and Freddie manages a feat on Melanin Monroe<\/i> by honoring each new element without letting one overshadow any of the others. This could be due to the power of Freddie\u2019s voice alone, which sounds natural in each of its many iterations, but the transitions are especially smooth on \u201cOblivion\u201d and \u201cBanjee.\u201d \u201cBanjee\u201d is \u2014 and there\u2019s really no other way to say this \u2014 a fucking bop<\/i>. \u201cIf you a bad faggot with some bad habits let me hear you sang\/let me hear you sang!\u201d Freddie drawls at the apex of the chorus, as a tropical-adjacent beat tumbles down after their vocals. It sounds like a church organ that had one too many Mai Tais, and it\u2019s a choice that turns a good song into a great one, one that deserves to be blasted out of car windows all across the Bay when it gets to hot to to keep them shut.<\/p>\n