Since I first wrote about soulful Scottish crooner Emeli Sandé back in March, the singer’s gone on to release her debut single “Heaven”, a stunning moment of soaring strings and a tripping drum ‘n’ bass beat. The song evidently struck a chord with listeners across the pond as well, clocking in at #2 on the UK Singles Chart after its release in mid-August.
Not too shabby for a debut single, eh?
Now, the singer is about the release “Daddy (feat. Naughty Boy),” the second single off of her forthcoming album Our Version Of Events, due out on November 20.
Once again working with producer Naughty Boy, the singer delivers her rich, spine-tingling vocals across a gorgeous landscape of dramatic strings, break beats and damning church bells. Like “Heaven,” “Daddy” is a stunning track that leaps from genre to genre, lying somewhere in between R&B, UK grime and a majestic James Bond theme.
The singer tells the story of giving in–to someone or something–that’s only causing harm. “He’s out your system, yeah it took you a while / You got your family back and you got your smile,” she starts to sing. But as the song progresses, resistance soon grows futile. “He pulled you closer, said he’ll never let go / You couldn’t trust him, but you never said no,” the singer achingly croons above the crashing drum ‘n’ bass.
So who or what exactly is at the heart of this narrative? Is it a good-for-nothing guy, or perhaps a jagged little pill? According to Sandé, it’s “addiction to anything”–so make like a choose-your-own-adventure book and pick your own ending to this tragic tale.
The song easily positions Sandé as one of the year’s most impressive and talented new acts, and if her debut album is anything even close to her genius lead singles, we’ve got a serious early contender for Album of 2012 on our hands.
“Daddy (feat. Naughty Boy)” will be released on November 20. (iTunes UK)
