Kehlani is entering a new and much more lighthearted era.
The singer-songwriter returned this week with the release of “After Hours,” her first solo record since 2022’s Blue Water Road LP. The single was a collaborative effort with Grammy-winning songwriter Daniel Church and Grammy-winning hitmaker Khris Riddick-Tynes, who is one half of the production duo The Rascals.
Hours before the debut, Kehlani caught up with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe and shed some light on her overall vision for the track. Kehlani confirmed she had recorded the song while staying at a San Diego Airbnb, where she split her time surfing and creating music.
She recalled walking into the house one day and hearing Nina Skye’s 2004 hit “Move Your Body,” which she described as one of her “all-time” favorite tunes. She was particularly inspired by the song’s sample of Cordel “Scatta” Burrell’s “Coolie Dance Rhythm,” and knew she wanted to use the beat in her next cut.
“Those drums, when they drop, it’s so recognizable and everybody just loses it,” she told Lowe. “Coming out of this, you know, pandemic — to global tragedy to global tragedy to global tragedy — I was, like, I’m not really in a space of wanting to make something that feels super jarring or super sad. I’m very outspoken about these things, but I want my art to provide some kind of life and fun. I want to go outside, I want to hear this outside, and I want to feel good. I focused just on making something that feels really good and the second we finished [‘After Hours’], we couldn’t stop listening to it."
Kehlani went on to say that the single is a solid reflection of her current state of mind, and is just a taste of what’s to come.
“Life is amazing,” she continued. “I mean, I’m in such a grounded place… putting all the finishing touches on everything that’s about to come thing year… I got a lot of shit coming.”
You can stream “After Hours” now on Apple Music, Spotify, and other major platforms.
