Singer and songwriter Anna Wise may be best known for her stellar (and Grammy-winning) collaborations with Kendrick Lamar like "These Walls" and "Pride." But her own music has proven equally worthy of note.
Wise has released music with the band Sonnymoon, and under her own name. But her new single "What's Up With You?" and its accompanying video—the latter of which Complex is proud to premiere—find her going in an entirely new musical and lyrical direction.
The song, Wise tells Complex, is "about reciprocity and not being afraid to be honest in any relationship, particularly sexual relationships." When it came time to do a video, Wise, who executive produced and co-directed alongside Sandy Smail, was inspired by Brazilian singer Elis Regina's video for her song "Águas de Março." Over the past year, several friends had turned Wise onto Regina's music, and that clip in particular stood out.
"The video is in black and white, and it's all of her face and the hands of the musicians who are accompanying her," Wise recalls. "So it's a very up close shot of the hand of the piano player, the bass player, and the drummer. It really inspired me, and I wanted to do something as an homage to that video. So that's what I tried to do, but in my own way. I wanted to make something simple that focused on the music and the performance."
The band, both in the video and for Wise's upcoming performances, is Taja Cheek of L'Rain on bass, Joy Morales on keys, and Sarah Galdes on drums. "I wanted that energy of all women," Wise explains in the middle of praising their musicianship. She is particularly effusive about Galdes.
"I think most drummers suck. There's only like three or four drummers who I think are amazing, and it has a lot to do with how well they can listen. A lot of drummers overplay, and Sarah does not. She listens really well."
Check out Anna, Sarah, and the rest of the band in the video for "What's Up With You?" above.
