Hit making singer-songwriter and producer The Dream is well known for his name being credited on monster hits such as Rihanna’s ‘Umbrella‘, Beyonce’s ‘Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)‘ and Justin Bieber’s ‘Baby‘. He now returns with his first solo material since last July in the form of his new EP, Crown. This six track project serves as a teaser to his upcoming sixth studio album ‘Crown Jewel‘ due July 10th.
Crown is a very cohesive EP with a modern R&B and soul vibe throughout its entirely. It’s first track ‘Prime‘ is probably not the best EP opener though. A bit of a sleepy filler track, its lyrics seem uninspiring and at times sound like he is just repeating the same lines. Luckily, the EP is soon redeemed by follow-up track ‘That’s My S**t‘ which contains the only collaboration on the release with T.I. It’s hook in the background repeating ‘yup!’ has a smooth vibe with a mix of throwback and current R&B flavourings.
These ‘yup!’s also seem to appear in the background of track ‘Throw It Back‘ but, on this occasion, it doesn’t seem to work and only takes away from the song. The tracks slight use of auto-tune is also annoying as well as it’s repetitive lyrics.
The EP’s finest moment comes with ‘Fruition‘ which sounds like something Sade could be singing on her 1992 album Love Deluxe. It’s production and lyrics are so dreamy and soulful. You could easily close your eyes and paint the picture of the song as soon as the first couple of lines are sung – “I’m always lost, deep in your eyes. You can tell me a million lies, and I’d believe it.”
This preview of the new album gives the impression it’s going to be very hit and miss. When he is on point with songs like That’s My S**t and Fruition he seems to tick all the boxes, but otherwise the tracks seem a bit filler, lacklustre and some-what boring. Nothing we haven’t heard before. Overall, an OK effort. What this EP does prove though, is that The-Dream and Tricky Stewart‘s production skills are still up to scratch; even if the content of the songs don’t have much personality to them at times.
