Little Simz - NO THANK YOU (Album Review)

Earlier this month, I tweeted about how 10 years ago I used to do a Top 40 Albums list for my blog every year, and how recently it's felt as though my connection towards new albums just isn't the same. A lot has changed in the world, the music industry, and my life during the past decade...  then a week after my tweet, this album dropped. 'NO THANK YOU' is the first time in as long as I can remember, where I felt compelled to open my laptop and write a few words about what it means to me.

From the opening track 'Angel', you can just feel that this is a collective at the very top of their game. Simz spitting serious truths, Inflo providing a soulful, Dilla-style looped beat, and Cleo Sol delivering a beautiful, angelic chorus. This song has all of the elements that has made the whole SAULT project become so universally-loved over the past few years - authentic, soulful and meaningful, taking another step forward and sounding like nothing else out there right now.

And then out of nowhere, Simz comes out swinging on 'Gorilla', which feels like a similar moment to when she screamed "I said it with my chest and I don't care who I offend" on 'Offence' from her defining 'GREY Area' album back in 2019. This feels like the single, like a club banger, and the only way to describe how it makes your feel, is by sharing J.I.D's tweet...

“Sim Simma who’s got the keys to my bloodclot Beamer” pic.twitter.com/xDZiSBZZiM

— (J.I.D) (@JIDsv) December 22, 2022

From there on-out, Simz weaves through a plethora of topics, including both mental health and her struggles with the music industry. You can feel the hurt, the pain, and the love that was coming out of her pen during these studio sessions. When you watch the short film (below), directed by Gabriel Moses, it takes the whole album up another level - you really feel how powerful, liberating and captivating the lyrics are, and it now becomes an all-encompassing piece of art. The delivery of her lyrics and the performances on tracks like 'X' and 'Broken' remind me of Kendrick on his latest project, with them both looking into the mirror and baring their souls to us, the listeners.

Speaking on the production, the sounds on this album are a definition of the roots of my musical tastes - hip-hop, soul, and gospel at the heart of it all. The way that Inflo approaches all of his projects makes it feels as though you're listening to a movie soundtrack - the classical and marching band vibes used on 'Silhouette' are so epic-sounding and take your mind to another dimension. His wide-range of work over the past few years has been nothing short of exceptional, but I think this has to be up there with his finest to-date.

This is Little Simz at her very best - she's an artist in every sense of the word, and this is project is thought-provoking, real, and sets her apart from everyone else out there right now. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for her to cancel her US tour, but hopefully adding this album to the setlist makes for an even better live show, and I can't wait to see it next year.

No, thank YOU, Simz.

Listen to the album below, or find your chosen platform here.