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Bubba (album)

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Bubba
Studio album by
Kaytranada
ReleasedDecember 13, 2019
Recorded2016–18
Genre
[1]
Length50:35
Label
  • RCA
  • Kaytranada Ent
ProducerKaytranada
Kaytranada chronology
99.9%
(2016) 		Bubba
(2019)
Alternative cover
Physical edition cover
Singles from Bubba
  1. "10%"
    Released: December 9, 2019

Bubba is the second studio album by Canadian electronic music producer Kaytranada, released by RCA Records on December 13, 2019. The album's release was preceded by the release of the single "10%" which featured well-known singer Kali Uchis, which also featured on the album.[2] The lead single "10%" featuring Kali Uchis was released on December 9, 2019.[3] In the lead-up to the album release, Igloofest, a winter music festival, announced Kaytranada as a surprise guest.[4] Just after the album release, Kaytranada announced a one-day pop-up shop and DJ set in Montreal.[5]

Kaytranada’s previous album 99.9%, was listed by Pitchfork as a dance record, which set the expectation for his new album, Bubba.[6] Bubba follows the current (2010's onwards) trend of short songs (with none more than three minutes long) with a larger list of songs on the album.[7]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic82/100[8]
Review scores
SourceRating
Pitchfork8.1/10[1]
NME[9]
MusicOMH[10]
The Line of Best Fit8/10[11]
Paste7.2/10[12]

The Haitian born, Canadian producer Kaytranada expands on the House and Techno genres, to create modern Disco tracks using what Billboard describes as an “inventive, funk-meets electronica sound”.[13] Kaytranada’s music has its own unique sound which National Public Radio notes, creates the sense that “the night has come and gone”.[14]

Kaytranada's previous album 99.9%, was called a dance record by Pitchfork, which was attributed to the collaboration between drums and synthesisers.[15] Pitchfork writes that this previous album set the expectation for his new album, Bubba.

In the first year of its release, Bubba topped Billboards’ Dance /Electronic Albums Chart.[16] [17] Kaytranada spoke out about his experience continuing producing for RCA records despite his experiences with depression from touring to promote his previous album.[18]

Bubba received critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score out of 100 to all reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 82, based on 7 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[8] Jonah Bromwich from Pitchfork compared the album to 99.9%, describing it as "another set of coherent, well-sequenced set of tracks without any major drop-offs, all the more impressive as the album runs more than 50 minutes," and writing that Kaytranada "blesses this woeful decade with one last great dance record."[1] Max Freedman from Paste commented on the queer sound of the album, noting that "it’s hard not to read some of its traits as directly stemming from just how much happens in the first three years after someone comes out."[12]

Recording

In an interview with GQ, Kaytranada said that recording Bubba was a very different process to his previous album.[19] Previously, songs would be edited on his laptop or recorded remotely and sent to collaborating artists for them to listen to and add their own ideas or parts.[20] With Bubba, recordings took place mainly in-studio with both the producer and the artist in person.[21]

The technical aspect of creating sounds and recording have also changed since the previous album, 99.9% writes Kinfolk magazine.[22] The artist had to adapt from recording and creating sounds on his laptop in his bedroom to creating chemistry and personal relationship with artists.[23]

In an interview with GQ Kaytranada revealed that some of the artists on the previous album 99.9% turned down Kaytranada, when they were asked to make an appearance on Bubba.[24] As a result of the change in imagined artists, the whole album headed in a slightly different direction than what he had originally intended.[25] The album began to focus on the “Kaytranada sound”, evolving his unique style of music with an emphasis on developing sounds that would appeal to his audience he stated.[26] The "Kaytranada sound" refers to a unique blend of neo-soul, hip-hop, and other varying genres in a Dance style that the artist describes as "Funky".[27]

Musical Style

Bubba does not stick strictly to any one genre, Reviewer Miguel Perez from NPR identifies that the album morphs between Afrobeat, House, Funk, R&B, Disco and Hip-Hop.[28] These are ubiquitous styles found in the Nigerian Popular genre from where Afrobeat gains its heritage.[29] Bubba is stated by NPR to rely heavily on its Afrobeat elements to give the listener music they can feel.[30] This is an effect that is resultant from the throbbing bass and soul in the production. In a Pitchfork review, this was said to create an effect which has been described by Jonah Bromwich (Music Reviewer for Pitchfork magazine) as “pushing the audience’s boundaries away from what they are comfortable with”.[31]

Atwood Magazine noticed that while Kaytranada’s style of music is categorised as Electronica, Kaytranada deviates from the usual musical audience that Electronica attracts, namely musical festival goers.[32] Instead, Kaytranada focuses on diversity and blending together different genres to give listeners a variety of tracks on the album which NPR stated, gives the album some versatility.[33]

The term Afrobeat refers to a musical genre invented by artist Fela Anikulapo Kuti in the 60s.[34] In an article from Rivers State University, Afrobeat was described as a musical style developed in Nigeria and is associated with social change and evolution.[35] The Nation writes that the thematic concepts of the album include hiding, love and culture and summarises the album as musically disconnected.[36] This similarity between the background to the Afrobeat genre and the themes of the album supports a conceptual link between “Bubba” and Afrobeat which was identified by Kinfolk magazine and NPR. [37][38]

Crack magazine takes the perspective that Kaytranada’s use of backbeats and synthesisers show the evolution of R&B over time and pay homage to this evolution throughout the album.[39] Mixtures of Club, love song, Afrobeat, 80’s, Hip-Hop and other genres create a new R&B sound that is unique to himself. This unique appeal is what the album relies on to find its own identity as stated in an album review by Kinfolk magazine.[40]

The album is unique for the reason that it appeals to audiences that, like Kaytranada, have a hard time fitting in in society as he stated in an interview with The FADER.[41] As a result, the album is an extension of Kaytranada’s own personality to some extent. The “Kaytranda sound”, a unique blend of genres is an example of the concept put forward by Rentfrow et al. identifying a link between an audience’s social context and environment and the music they listen to.[42] This is said to be the result of music’s role in social bonding, and its use as a vehicle for historical knowledge as identified by Levitin in his study into the effect of music on the brain.[43] Kaytranada revealed the album was influenced by the events in his own life between the release of his previous album 99.9% and Bubba; including opening up about his sexuality, coming to terms with his newfound fame and dealing with the anxiety and stress that came with this. [44] “Bubba” focuses on this theme of loneliness and being an outcast, which is stated by Kinfolk to be what appeals most to his audience.[45]

The sub-genre of neo-soul heavily influenced Kaytranada’s musical style on this album. He focused on an up-tempo, soulful R&B feel to the album that people could dance to in clubs as he told Rolling Stone Magazine.[46] This contributes to Kaytranada’s psychedelic vision which is synthesised into song.[47]


Lyrics and Themes

On an interview with NPR, Kaytranada stated that his vision for the album is that it be used as a dance album.[48] Further supporting this, Pitchfork critiques that the tracks on this album are designed to keep the listener in a constant state of motion, oblivious to the events happening around them.[49] This is a result of Kaytranada’s focus on disco and creating a sound that could be played in clubs.[50] In an interview with NPR, Kaytranda tells us that his album has a last call feel to the story he tells with it, which NPR interprets as using songs to set an end of the night mood.[51]

A review from The Nation writes that the album tries to express the thematic concepts of love, culture, need, and hiding behind masks.[52] Individual songs and artists don’t thematically blend across one another or create a chronology of events, and instead songs transition musically rather than thematically.[53] Further to this point, Stephen Bijan from The Nation states that the songs “What you Need” and “Vex Oh” give disconnected, almost opposing views on issues such as love.[54]

The album plays at creating a psychedelic feel to the songs, with repetitive lyrics and instrumentals that create a trance-like effect. A review from The Nation states that this repetition has a hypnotising effect which is found in most club songs.[55]

Track listing

Credits adapted from Apple Music and Tidal.[56][57]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Do It"
2:12
2."2 the Music" (featuring Iman Omari)
  • Iman Omari
  • Celestin
3:55
3."Go DJ" (featuring SiR)
2:36
4."Gray Area" (featuring Mick Jenkins)
2:19
5."Puff Lah"
  • Celestin
1:53
6."10%" (featuring Kali Uchis)
  • Celestin
  • Karly Loaiza
  • Colin Leonard
  • Mckinley Jackson
  • Melvin Steals
  • Mervin Steals
3:06
7."Need It" (featuring Masego)
2:17
8."Taste" (featuring VanJess)
3:37
9."Oh No" (featuring Estelle)
2:47
10."What You Need" (featuring Charlotte Day Wilson)
3:03
11."Vex Oh" (featuring GoldLink, Eight9fly and Ari PenSmith)
2:42
12."Scared to Death"
  • Celestin
  • Willie Lee Jr.
2:33
13."Freefall" (featuring Durand Bernarr)
  • Durand Bernarr
  • Celestin
3:01
14."Culture" (featuring Teedra Moses)
4:08
15."The Worst in Me" (featuring Tinashe)
3:46
16."September 21"
  • Celestin
1:51
17."Midsection" (featuring Pharrell Williams)
4:49
Total length:50:35

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.[57]

  • Kaytranada – production
  • Colin Leonard – mastering engineering (track 6)

Charts

Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[58] 53
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[59] 81
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[60] 194
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[61] 21
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[62] 34
French Albums (SNEP)[63] 128
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[64] 39
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[65] 74
UK Albums (OCC)[66] 68
US Billboard 200[67] 56
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[68] 1

References

  1. ^ a b c Bromwich, Jonah (December 17, 2019). "Kaytranada: Bubba Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  2. ^ Malone, Chris (December 3, 2019). "Kaytranada's 'BUBBA' Album Features Collaborators Old And New". Forbes. Retrieved June 17, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Hussey, Allison (December 9, 2019). "Kaytranada Announces New Album BUBBA, Shares New Song "10%" With Kali Uchis: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  4. ^ Slingerland, Calum (December 10, 2019). "Montreal's Igloofest Adds Kaytranada to 2020 Lineup". Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  5. ^ @KAYTRANADA (December 14, 2019). "MONTREAL POP UP + DJ SET. 12/19. tickets on sale now" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. ^ Bromwich, Jonah (December 17, 2019). "Kaytranada: Bubba". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ Malone, Chris (September 10, 2019). "Kaytranada's 'BUBBA' Album Features Collaborators Old And New". Forbes. Retrieved June 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ a b "Reviews for Bubba by Kaytranada". Metacritic. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  9. ^ Smith, Thomas (December 13, 2019). "Kaytranada – 'Bubba' review: one of the year's most addictive club records". NME. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  10. ^ Devlin, Ben (December 14, 2019). "Kaytranada – BUBBA". MusicOMH. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  11. ^ Richardson, Kitty (December 14, 2019). "Kaytranada's masterful, diverse production makes Bubba an album we needed to hear this weekend". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  12. ^ a b Freedman, Max (December 16, 2019). "KAYTRANADA's BUBBA Is Quietly Queer". Paste. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  13. ^ Crisano, Tatiana (August 14, 2017). "Songs Kaytranada Produced: 5 You Didn't Know". Billboard. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ^ Perez, Miguel. "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ^ Bromwich, Jonah (December 17, 2019). "Kaytranada: Bubba". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 17, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  16. ^ "Hot Dance/Electronic Songs Chart". Billboard. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  17. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  18. ^ Sway's Universe, Kaytranada Candidly Speaks on Depression, Sexual Orientation, Madonna & Sampling Process, retrieved June 18, 2020
  19. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  20. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  21. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  22. ^ Michaels, S (September 10, 2019). "Kaytranada". Kinfolk. 33.
  23. ^ Michaels, S (September 10, 2019). "Kaytranda". Kinfolk. 33.
  24. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  25. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  26. ^ Coley, Jordan. "Producer Kaytranada on Turning Down Dr. Dre and Loving Rap as a Gay Man". GQ. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  27. ^ Anderson, Errol (May 24, 2013). "Touching Bass: Kaytranada". Vice (in Danish). Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  28. ^ Perez, Miguel. "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  29. ^ Adewumi, A (2018). Afrobeat Music as Cultural Heritage in Nigeria: Myth or Reality?. Vol. 5. Rivers State University: Journal of Public Law.
  30. ^ Perez, Miguel. "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  31. ^ Bromwich, Jonah. "Kaytranada: Bubba". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  32. ^ Weiner, Josh (January 14, 2020). "Our Take: Kaytranada Delivers the Last Great Dance Record of the 2010s". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  33. ^ Miguel, Perez. "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  34. ^ Adewumi, A (2018). Afrobeat Music as Cultural Heritage in Nigeria: Myth or Reality?. Vol. 5. Rivers State University: Journal of Public Law.
  35. ^ Adewumi, A (2018). Afrobeat Music as Cultural Heritage in Nigeria: Myth or Reality?. Vol. 5. Rivers State University: Journal of Public Law.
  36. ^ Stephen, Bijan (February 4, 2020). "Kaytranada Captures an Entire Party's Worth of Sound on 'Bubba'". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  37. ^ Michaels, S (September 10, 2019). "Kaytranada". Kinfolk. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  38. ^ Perez, Miguel. "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  39. ^ Cook, Cameron (October 7, 2019). "Kaytranada – 'Bubba' Review". Crack Magazine. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  40. ^ Michaels, S (September 10, 2019). "Kaytranda". Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  41. ^ Frank, Alex (May 2016). "Kaytranada Is Reaching 100%". The FADER. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  42. ^ Rentfrow, P (2011). "The Structure of Musical Preferences: A Five Factor Model". Journal of Personal and Social Psychology. 100. et. al.: 6.
  43. ^ Levitin, D (2008). "The World in Six Songs: How the Musical Brain Created Human Nature". Plume.
  44. ^ Frank, Alex (May 2016). "Kaytranada Is Reaching 100%". The FADER. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  45. ^ Michaels, S (September 10, 2019). "Kaytranada". Kinfolk. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  46. ^ Reed, Ryan (December 10, 2019). "Kaytranada Taps Pharrell, Tinashe for New LP 'Bubba'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 18, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  47. ^ Malone, Chris. "Kaytranada's 'BUBBA' Album Features Collaborators Old And New". Forbes. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  48. ^ Perez, Miguel (January 7, 2020). "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  49. ^ Bromwich, Jonah (December 17, 2019). "Kaytranada: Bubba". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  50. ^ Bromwich, Jonah (December 17, 2019). "Kaytranada: Bubba". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  51. ^ Miguel, Perez (January 7, 2020). "On 'BUBBA,' Kaytranada Captures Dance Music's Central Tenet". NPR.org. Retrieved June 22, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  52. ^ Stephen, Bijan (February 4, 2020). "Kaytranada Captures an Entire Party's Worth of Sound on 'Bubba'". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  53. ^ Stephen, Bijan (February 4, 2020). "Kaytranada Captures an Entire Party's Worth of Sound on 'Bubba'". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  54. ^ Stephen, Bijan (February 4, 2020). "Kaytranada Captures an Entire Party's Worth of Sound on 'Bubba'". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  55. ^ Stephen, Bijan (February 4, 2020). "Kaytranada Captures an Entire Party's Worth of Sound on 'Bubba'". ISSN 0027-8378. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  56. ^ "Bubba by KAYTRANADA on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  57. ^ a b "10% / KAYTRANADA – TIDAL". Tidal. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
  58. ^ "ARIA Chart Watch #556". auspOp. December 21, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  59. ^ "Ultratop.be – Kaytranada – Bubba" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  60. ^ "Ultratop.be – Kaytranada – Bubba" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  61. ^ "Kaytranada Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
  62. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Kaytranada – Bubba" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  63. ^ "Top Albums (Week 51, 2019)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
  64. ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. December 23, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  65. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Kaytranada – Bubba". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  66. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  67. ^ "Kaytranada Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
  68. ^ "Kaytranada Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
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