“King of Hearts” has been a long time coming–from leaked demos, to video previews, to grainy fan videos sent in from Kanye West‘s DJ sets overseas, to official remixes–but now, Cassie‘s major comeback single has finally been unleashed.
And the verdict? It’s one of my favorite songs of 2012 already. Easily.
From the opening drippy electro-blips, to the hand claps, to the ghostly moans echoing in the distance, to the stomping four-to-the-floor beat, the J2-produced club banger is a genius return for Cassie, meshing together the singer’s signature chilly-R&B delivery (“Me & U”) with the “jungle beats” of Ibiza (as she described in V Magazine last month) to form one long, hypnotic blast-off into the depths of space.
Still, this isn’t your standard dance-pop ditty found in heavy rotation your local Top 40 radio station–it’s better. Way better.
If there’s any comparisons to be drawn, “King of Hearts” channels elements of Janet‘s tranced-out Discipline masterpiece “Rock With U,” as well as Kelis‘ hugely underrated 22nd century dance floor masterpiece Flesh Tone.
It’s that kind of fresh, it’s that kind of innovative: The lyrics, the melodies, the song structure, the delivery, the beats–there’s not one part of this song that contains even a single molecular flaw.
“You are the prince of charm/Seduction is your art/You’ll never play my love/You’re just my king of hearts,” Cassie sweetly croons on repeat. Are there any other pop lyrics quite as charming out there right now? It’s the ultimate love letter–all the more fitting that the song is to be officially released on Valentine’s Day.
Simply put: “King of Hearts” is a game-changer. Please…don’t fuck this up, Diddy.
“King of Hearts” will be released on February 14. (iTunes)
