This summer, in June 2023, Janelle Monáe put out her fourth album, The Age of Pleasure. Listening to it made me want to revisit her Song Exploder episode, from 2018. One thing on Song Exploder that I personally love is when we get to hear an artist’s raw voice memo, from the moment when they’re first coming up with a song idea. This episode has one of my all-time favorites.
Janelle Monáe is an award-winning musician and actress who released her first record in 2007. She’s been nominated for multiple Grammys, and she starred in the Oscar films Moonlight and Hidden Figures. In April 2018, she released her third album, Dirty Computer, which includes this song, “So Afraid.” In this episode, Janelle Monáe takes “So Afraid” apart, to explain how she built it, step by step—beginning with a trip to the dentist.
For more, visit songexploder.net/janelle-monae.
Imagine Dragons - Follow You
girl in red - Serotonin
Porter Robinson - Get Your Wish
Lianne La Havas - Can't Fight
Jon Batiste - We Are
Glass Animals - Heat Waves
Sasha Sloan - Until It Happens To You
PJ Morton - Say So (feat. JoJo)
HAIM - Summer Girl
Yusuf / Cat Stevens - Father and Son
Common - A Riot In My Mind
Jewel - You Were Meant For Me
Billie Eilish - Everything I Wanted
Re-issue: Phoebe Bridgers - Scott Street
Deftones - Ohms
Run the Jewels - JU$T
Dua Lipa - Levitating
Selena Gomez - Lose You to Love Me
Re-issue: Ludwig Göransson - Black Panther
Kelly Lee Owens - On
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