DECEMBER 2024
Be right back
Muni Long, re-introduces sophistication and persuasive songwriting to R&B,
A barren landscape for two decades.
We have seen mumbling singers
with good songs over the years, but
none quite like muni long.
R&B is often used as the benchmark for vocal prowess. Vocal gymnastics is an elephantine determiner of how well an R&B song is sung. This observation is debatable, but
what most may have in agreement is that the wait for a hurrah of this magnitude has been agonising. Appreciators were mildly satiated with some songs pre 'Hrs & Hrs', but
post Tik Tok hit, many have surrendered and accepted that personal standards
were on a declivity, begging for an artist to throw a rope.
That, Muni Long has done with her vividly crafted LP, 'Revenge'.
Clinging to every word meant for her estranged husband, the deprived listener
swings through verses and choruses, hanging on for dear life while experiencing his love
for her and her love for him, landing where they landed. Enmeshed in pain,
passion, hope and acceptance the already fan is floored
by the mark of a great writer.
Muni-It-Has-Been-Too-Long.
Pulling tissues to mourn the end of their relationship prolongs the blues without missing a beat. Sniffling an unspoken hope of it being temporary and them finding their
way back to each other takes up a little more time than expected. Collecting self, the listener affirms through drying tears that the magic in this union should not be sidelined for fame, success and the lack of understanding. Obviously, there is an assumption
that anyone has the right to chime in since Long's affections were
made public more than once.
This partnership set the stage.
Would she have penned such propulsive melodies and words for a moribund genre,
if not for him? This was his purpose. To ignite the compelling spark that is Muni Long.
Going further by suggesting she change her new name from Munee to Muni,
he accidentally facilitates the birth of a star with
an alphabetical tweak.
With relationships falling apart so easily, it is good to have a body of work
that speaks of one that most wish would have stood the test of time.
A romance that should have come out of
the trenches, torn and intact.
Perfectly ruined.