Janelle Monae first hit my radar back in 2008 when a good friend passed along a link to her freshman LP, “Metropolis: The Chase Suite“, and my mind has been constantly blown ever since.
Hailing from the one of the music capitals of the world, Atlanta, Monae kind of left a lot of her fans hanging after the underground successes of “Many Moons” and “Sincerely, Jane” from her fledgling album. That is all in the past now that she’s back on the scene and ready to release her second studio album, “ArchAndroid“, due out May 18th.
Albeit, she’s now signed with Bad Boy Records as her distributor, Monae still maintains the indie feel of her music under the Wonderland Arts Society. This time around the afro-punk songstress has teamed up with Big Boi of Outkast to produce an updated take on a dance that was revolutionized by the Godfather of Soul, James Brown.
“Tightrope” is an upbeat track with a great deal of elements that you’d find in a far out Missy Elliot or Andre 3000 track. It’s the perfect way to get a dance party or night out on the town started.
The true magic comes from the music video, though, which is set in a time where dancing is illegal unless controlled within the confines of the government. It’s a pretty radical concept, but anyone who is familiar with her first music video should have no problem latching on to this gem.
Take a look at the video and judge for your self:
Janelle Monae feat. Big Boi – \”Tightrope\”
