Shelita

If there’s one record that every pop music enthusiast needs to have playing on their stereo this September, it is unquestionably SHELITA, the debut album from the L.A.-born, Seattle-raised songstress Shelita, whose voice uniquely channels elements of her rebellious, rock n’ roll hometown while capturing the essence of pop-focused R&B. Her cocktail of melodies infects tracks like “Save!,” “Religion!,” “Live!” and “Together!” with a sensational charm that I just haven’t heard in any of the recent chart-topping pop to make waves in the States this summer. 

Shelita might be a fresh face in the game, but as I see it, she is the undisputed rookie of the year in 2019, regardless of the genre we’re discussing. “Libations!” was the first song that I listened to from this LP, and in its first fifteen seconds of play, I was instantly hooked on our singer’s harmonious command of the beat. She’s got so much confidence here, so much raw swagger in “Power!” and “Penetrate!,” and although she’s not devoid of a soft, intimate side to her singing style, she tends to shine the brightest when she’s going after the mountainous melody imaginable. 

LISTEN TO SHELITA: https://shelita.lnk.to/SHELITA 

This young woman doesn’t sound like a newcomer to the recording studio experience; contrarily, Shelita is often so focused that she makes the backing instrumentation seem a little lacking by comparison. You could put her in front of an orchestra at Benaroya Hall just as easily as you could book her a 20-minute spot opening for some random rock band at Neumos, and still her voice would light up the venue with a charisma that only the most gifted of stars possess. 

The piano balladry of “Special!” and the sizzling bassline of “Tango!” were designed to get our attention, and since Shelita released this unrivaled debut, they (along with the other seven songs on this record) have been doing just that. Here we have an artist with all the right tools at exactly the right time, and she’s putting everything that she’s got into these tracks and then some. Rhythm and harmony are the biggest components in the chic work of art that is SHELITA, but were they not delivered by such an adept source, they wouldn’t be nearly as enchanting as they are here. All in all Shelita ranks among the best I've heard this year.

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Trace Whittaker

Newcastle-upon-Tyne

9/2019