Noname – Telefone: A Voice You Can’t Forget, A Voice You Want To Converse With

The kind of voice to whisper you soothing words before you hang up the phone

Then leave your mind mesmerized by all kind of happy thoughts, calm at home alone

Words that mean the world to you as your heart they warm…

Such a voice can only be Noname’s voice, Mississipi vagabond who heals and inspires,

Carries young women voices, along melodies familiar to everybody,

Singing life experiences and feelings that sound familiar to everybody.

Noname, this July 31st, has brought to the world something real

Her very first music project, Telefone, “a culmination of different conversations she’s had over the phone that have impacted who she is as an artist and young adult in Chicago.

The tape is meant [to] feel like you’re talking to someone you like on the phone for first time, exploring their likes and dislikes, dreams and aspirations, and their ideas about the world around them.”

Meaningful poet concerned about her community, like Jamila Woods,

Inspiring and moving like Eryn Allen Kane,

With meaningful rhymes surrealist and surprising like Chance The Rapper‘s,

Noname is part of these new artists coming up to the limelight to amaze, bless and enlighten the world, with her ambition make music for Freedom, and push the culture forward..

So many layers are yet to dissect in this project, starting with the cover art:

The drawing seems to be a portrait of her younger self, as we know Noname always sighs after being a child again, just like Chance The Rapper, known for his childish sides in his music.

The skeleton’s skull on her head refers to all the dark things in her life she writes about, about death, concerning Chicago’s insecurity ‘Casket Pretty’,

Or fighting cancer as suggested in Reality Checked.

From this song, Reality Checked, which deals with her lack of self-confidence, insecurity, and fear of new opportunity, staying in comfort zone, and empowers to take the chance to go and grow,

We can make a direct link with her words « Skeleton in my closets »: the black and white skeleton skull over her head may also refer to everything embarrassing, dark secrets, and fears that helps you from keeping calm and blooming like a colorful flower, spreading your wings out of the Aviary.

« Dream in technicolor

Live in black and white »

Listening to first track Yesterday, we attend the actual introduction of an upcoming artist full of substance, we call  Noname, someone who’s about to make a name for herself in this game.

The intro of the song can be summed up with one sentence: ‘what does it profit a man to gain the whole world if he loses his soul’

She keeps searching for soul-saving, even though she’s tempted to call back her devil

The rest of the song depicts how fast flows the time:

The last time she saw her brother Mike, the last memories of her relatives smiling,

The fleeting souvenirs of her blowing the candles out, the days when she was still unknown to the world…

Then comes Sunny Duet

Maybe another phone conversation between her and a Casanova, dating so many girls he forgot her name.

Anyway, here, once again, Noname shows off how descriptive can be her lyrics, almost surrealist, suggestive,

Inspiring enough to  make you want to freestyle over the song.

Instrumental too is very suggestive and imaginative, plus overwhelming.

This duet, or dialogue, takes place after the rain, or during the lull,

With the beats and harmonies imitating the raindrops

And the keys letting listeners picture the first rays of sunshine back in the sky, shining back in our eyes.

Plus the overall sounds like a freestyle, spoken word, rhymes dancing in the rain,

Inspired by a creative lyrical style:

Summertime delight, delight
Mississippi over ice
Janet Jackson and flashing lights

Finally, besides all the meanings behind her songwriting, and her inspirations, Telefone is first of all music to make you FEEL good, feel emotions, feel the soul of an artist who’s gone through paths similar to yours,  feel your own soul.

Among the most soothing songs: