Best known for her numerous contributions to the Alternative/Electronic R&B genres, Kelela is one of the strongest songwriters currently working in the industry. Collaborating with a plethora of queer producers and artists through the years, she has a special way of bringing heartbreaking lyrics and tales of love to life with exciting and original instrumentals. On May 31st, Kelela posted to X, teasing an early drop for the third single in support of her upcoming album, new avatar.
With “idea 1” and “linknb” already released, her newest single, “point blank,” only further emphasizes the grungy and experimental sound Kelela is going for with this next project. This is not her first rodeo, though. New avatar seemingly teases the experimental nature of her first mixtape, Cut 4 Me, and her years of musical exploration, tweaking and expanding her own sound. With her beginnings of performing jazz standards in cafes and singing in the indie band Dizzy Spells, Kelela’s solo career is an amalgamation of her musical background and experiences as a queer black woman in the United States.
Bouncy and bassy, “point blank” pulls the listener in immediately with a heavy synth motif that serves as the foundation for the entire four-minute track. Distorted and then layered with electronic drum breaks, the instrumental almost serves as a callback to the opening track, “Guns & Synths,” from Kelela’s debut mixtape, Cut 4 Me. Opening with the lines, “By now, I hope you see / The guns are pointed at me / And the more I pour, the more you reap / Got me working while you’re fast asleep,” Kelela speaks on the emotional labor and mental strife that come with an imbalanced relationship. Throughout the track, she details the feeling of pouring yourself into a relationship, hoping your love and communication will open your partner up, only to receive coldness and “bleak” love back. Towards the end of the chorus, she sings, “And the more I pour, the more you reap / And I’m too spent to weep,” outlining how tired and emotionally numb she is from lifting someone up, never to receive the same thing in return. In a press release, she breaks down this exact idea:
“I first outline the baseline dynamic, which is that we’re expected to endure men’s inability to self-regulate. The fantasy many of us are invested in is one where we do such a good job of holding space that it starts to rub off on our partner over time, eventually inducing some sort of revelation and building their emotional maturity. Yet the more we pour into men, the more entitled they become. We are down bad.“
In verse 2, she further elaborates on the concept of trying to penetrate an emotionally immature partner’s walls: “Gentle, never weak / Touched you through a wall, I know it never lasts / And I’m tempted, but I think I’m gonna pass.” Many times in love, we believe that if we try hard enough and give enough stability to a partner, they will recognize it and grow emotionally to meet our needs; Kelela is commenting on the unfortunate reality of getting a minuscule taste of what could be with a partner, only to be shut out again. “Point blank” also serves as a pseudo-commentary on the “I can fix him” epidemic. We all still have needs — romantically, emotionally and sexually — that especially make these situations hard, and these needs are part of Kelela’s message in this track.
Despite the emotional turmoil and issues she is facing in this partnership, she still craves this person’s touch: “I’m taking what I want, babe / But you can’t stay, don’t start, ah,” and “Keep it to the body, babe / Point blank, ‘nother round” are sung in the song’s bridge. The title “point blank” refers to her bluntness in admitting the relationship has progressed to being only a physical connection for her, as well as serving as wordplay on the idea that the “guns” are pointed at her. “By now I hope you see / The guns are pointed at me,” is repeated throughout the chorus and song. The guns in this situation symbolize her partner’s immaturity and entitlement, “shooting” her point-blank while she tries to build them up.
New avatar is set to release on July 10, with nine additional tracks. “Point blank,” “linknb” and “idea 1” so far have kept a theme of feeling overlooked and underappreciated. Whether that be in love, in the music industry or in her day-to-day life, Kelela uses each track to express this feeling through a different lens and point of view. Her use of vocal layering and self-harmonization, on top of the already catchy instrumentals, keeps the listener engaged, excited and ready for the entire album. She has announced an international fall tour, new avatar live, starting in early September in the United States and continuing through the first week of November, ending in the United Kingdom.
Get your tour tickets here.
Keep up with Kelela:
Website / Spotify / Apple Music / Instagram / TikTok / Youtube / X
