#agesexlocation

[freshthoughts2020]

ARI LENNOX

[akiiro3]

月曜日の朝からこんな感じ。音はもちろん、#luckydaye や#summerwalker など、メンツも今年っぽい一枚。ですが、もう今年も終わりが近い。なんてこと。 #arilennox #agesexlocation #vinyl #2022 https://www.instagram.com/p/ClxTiJsvghK/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[thetorreediary]

age/sex/location | album review

Coming off the heels of her critically acclaimed debut album, Shea Butter Baby, Ari Lennox is busting our musical minds yet again with A/S/L ( age/sex/location), the popular acronym coined by users of popular instant messaging services such as, Quantum later renamed AOL. In the early 90s, with the new boom of the internet, instant messaging was all the rage due to it being the first time many users would communicate with people outside of their immediate vicinity and in an instant at that. So of course to get the logistics out the way before engaging in further conversation most users would begin these conversations with the question of ASL. Lennox uses it here as an invitation into the world which she describes as “before the self-work/discovery begins”. She takes the listener on a journey through dating apps and booty calls, among other things.

As an album in its entirety, it's very reminiscent of classic 90s R&B with hints of early 2000s neo-soul with an undertone of 70s soul which is apparent by the use of 70s samples laced throughout almost half the album. Very sultry, smooth, and easygoing. A/S/L features some key players in the current R&B game such as newcomers Lucky Daye and Chloe, alongside introverted but vocal powerhouse Summer Walker. On the initial listen, quite a few tracks stuck out like shining stars to me, but none quite like the intro song POF, and outro Queen Space, which perfectly sums up the whole project. She takes the audience through a journey between these two tracks that is all too relatable for 21st-century love-seekers. With that being said there were also tracks that I liked in the context of the album as a whole and only one I did not care for as it relates to the flow of the album.

POF: Words and their placements, to me, always mean things as it relates to art. This is especially true when it comes to songwriting. Lennox does not hold back with POF. The opening lines being

“Destined for greatness" is always what my mama said

Young black woman approachin' thirty with no lover in my bed

Cannot settle, I got standards, NASCAR racin' in my head”, to unpack this line for line, I’d say that Lennox knows her worth and it’s evident based on the first line as she reminisces on what her mother has “always'' sewn into her, that she is destined for greatness, this lays the groundwork for her knowing her worth and not settling. This shows to be true in the next line of her being a young black woman coming into womanhood of being in her 30s and subsequently having standards that are in constant thought as the hyperbole insinuates. The mention of her being a young BLACK woman does not go unnoticed here, as the track’s name is that of a popular dating app where it is common knowledge that black women and Asian men are the least sought after, which can be a direct result of why she lets the listener know that despite this fact she has standards and they are at the forefront of her mind. The track is laced with the nuances of online dating woes such as catfishing, the act of pretending to be someone you aren’t to secure more potential prospects or suitors than if they presented as their true selves. In POF, Lennox mentions what she refers to as hat-fishin’ and questions why the suitor does not have any pictures on their profile without a hat, alluding to the withholding of potential prevalent balding. Also, there is mention of a suitor referencing religion, which Lennox sees as a wack way of being fake-deep or as a way to grab some sense of vulnerability followed by the ask of sex, this is just a grimy way of going about things.

Pressure: A/S/L’ s first single to be released. In my humble opinion, Pressure is not as equally yolked with the rest of the album. It sounds the most manufactured of the rest. It sticks out like a sore thumb, especially when the rest of the album feels so authentic.

Mean Mug: Ari is giving us a very jazzy and mellow vibe to segway into the second half of the project. There are touches of blues embedded which remind her of previous works, mostly Chicago Boy from her 2019 debut album Shea Butter Baby.

Boy Bye: According to Ari Lennox, this melodic and comical track was recorded in a way that has become unconventional in this digital/virtual age of music. Lennox and fellow R&B rising star Lucky Daye recorded this in the studio together. They got the opportunity to collaborate in the truest sense of the word. They were able to give the listener a peek into how things were done back in the day and this made for a track very reminiscent of Marvin and Tammy with how their adlibs were tailored to the magic they were creating at the moment.

Blocking You: on the surface its a song about blocking someone, presumeablly an ex who she doesnt want them to see her socials or be able to reach her in this moment in time. But the longer the song goes, the deeper and wider the range of people and emotions gets. She is not only blocking out people such as “ haters, family, neighbors, police and exes”, but shes also blocking out “labels, bill-collectors, and anxiety”. She pleas for a just a moment or just a day to herself.

Queen Space: If the intro POF leads the listener into this cesspool of what new-age dating looks like for the masses and the body of the album is the journey one goes through navigating said cesspool, then Queen Space as the title suggests is the headspace one enters after seeing what the dating pool has to offer. With help from songstress Summer Walker, Lennox lays it all out for her potential suitor. Stating empowering things such as “[her] love being a privilege”, “I deserve something purer” and the repeated demand of “don’t waste my queen space”. The title subsequently is a metaphor for her vagina as the line, “true elevation, when I let you taste”, suggests.

- Tiffany Torree

As always follow our lovely author on all platforms @tiffanytorree

[freshthoughts2020]

ARI

[cjsmusic101]

#arilennox album #agesexlocation #outnow #wastemytime is my fave 😜 #songoftheday #musicblogger https://www.instagram.com/p/CijG1Q2sB1x/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[paraphraze615]

Mood. #NowPlaying #StopBy #AriLennox #AgeSexLocation #Mood #MoodAF #MoodMuzik https://www.instagram.com/p/CiWZZVBAJtk/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[itzwhatevajoe]

Who the f*ck said R&B was dead???!!! Shhhhhiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiid!!!!!! @arilennox #agesexlocation got something to say!!!!!

[sinoseastarr-blog]

Natural face beat 1look 3 different lip colors 1st 💄 color: #mac Age, Sex & Location Topped with Brandy Antique Velvet #maclipstick #agesexlocation #toppedwithbrandy #antiquevelvet #macfoundation #lipstick #makeup #facebeat #africanbeauty #africanbutter https://www.instagram.com/p/CZE_4Q3s_Ky/?utm_medium=tumblr