Born in Queens, New York and raised in London, R&B singer-songwriter Abra is now based in the American rap capital of Atlanta, Georgia as the only female member of rap crew Awful Records. After catching the ear of Father (rapper and founder of Awful Records) by through her YouTube uploads of covers of rap and R&B and indie rock songs, Abra began recording original music with the all-male music collective.
With a debut album and two EPs to her name, Abra’s aesthetic – a juxtaposition of gentle, sultry and lo-fi bedroom pop vocals against energetic supporting beats – have won her critical acclaim as an alt R&B inspiration and an emerging style icon (her song “Roses” was recently used to score the J.W. Anderson Fall 2016 show).
“Fruit,” a single featured from her self-produced debut album Rose is her best-known track and a great introduction to her oeuvre. Anyone would be impressed by her raw, honest and organic freestyle lyricism and effortlessly fluid vocals, which seamlessly fuses with the song’s pulsing bass lines.
But Abra’s lyrical content – which revolves around an aesthetic of ‘femme empowerment’ and traces an emotional journey towards increasing self-awareness, freedom, confidence, emotional independence and maturity – will probably strike the strongest chord with young black woman:
“I really wanted to start off with an attitude of confidence as opposed to the heartbroken stuff people are used to — that sad girl shit. It’s time to regain your self-esteem and know who you are […] A lot of girls come out the woodwork to show me support because they understand. It’s nice to know that I’m a part of something that’s letting black girls be free to be themselves.”
Abra, FADER
“Fruit” features an emotional monologue directed towards an emotionally unavailable significant other, who appears to be plagued by the harmful opinions of people external to the relationship:
‘Don't listen to a word they say
I'm in your head like every day
And you deny yourself
And then you scream my name
And I can't take it
No don't listen to a word they say
I'm in your head like every day
And you deny yourself and then you scream my name
And I can't take it
Don't listen to a word they say
I'm your head like (x 7)
Lyrics: Genius
In the outro, Abra’s confidence and sense of self turns down her vocals into a wispy plea, as she realizes that her ability to influence her lover may be limited:
‘Are you really gonna stand there
Staring at me all the way from across the room?
Are you really gonna stand there
Staring at me?’
While Abra draws from R&B instead of electronic music, the parallel to Grimes – another indie singer-songwriter-producer with an independent streak who used to specialize in making bedroom pop for outsiders and misfits – is unmistakable. Like Grimes, Abra may eventually abandon her bedroom closet and DIY aesthetic for a fuller and more produced sound. But there is no need to rush – Abra’s current aesthetic is a good way to relive the promises and perils of adolescence, when a greater sense of self-definition is nearly in sight.
