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.
Bat for Lashes - Kids in the Dark
Jay Som - Tenderness
Slipknot - Unsainted
Raphael Saadiq - Kings Fall
Clairo - Alewife
Brittany Howard - Stay High
Robyn - Honey
Bon Iver - Holyfields,
Sleater-Kinney - The Future Is Here
Denzel Curry - RICKY
Jamila Woods - BALDWIN
Big Thief - Cattails
Sheryl Crow - Redemption Day (feat. Johnny Cash)
Raleigh Ritchie - Time in a Tree
The Mountain Goats - Cadaver Sniffing Dog
The Cranberries - All Over Now
Panda Bear - Dolphin
Sharon Van Etten - Seventeen
Nakhane - New Brighton (feat. Anohni)
Mumford & Sons - Beloved
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