Ocean – [wifisfuneral] ft. [Smoove’L]

wifisfuneral has had a fairly intricately extensive career thus far and he has come a very long way since his early introduction into the scene. Some fans have proclaimed their dislike for his new offerings claiming that he has completely changed, although I don’t think he has necessarily changed, he has rather grown up. Sure, his music sounds very dissimilar to his older releases, but that’s not a bad thing in the slightest and I think his early fans just need to keep in mind that everyone grows and goes through different phases throughout their lives. I for one am a huge fan of some of his latest offerings because I think they show that not only has he shown signs of progression through his music, but also progression as a person himself. This is why after hearing some of his most recent singles that have dropped off of his upcoming album Pain, I couldn’t have higher hopes for the project when it comes out at the end of this month.

As a follow-up to his most recent release for his song “Lost in Time” which featured Coi Leray, he decided to drop an additional song off of the album entitled “Ocean” and recruited Smoove’L to accompany him. Although I was not familiar with Smoove prior to this track, I’m glad I’ve been introduced, and I definitely look forward to tapping into more of his music in the future. Hitmakers Callari and Bless U Andy teamed up to create the instrumental for this record, and I can’t stress enough how great of a job they definitely did. The melody is light and almost placed on the backburner as the insistent percussion and bouncy drums come together to provide a rhythm that is somewhat reminiscent of an uncharacteristic New York City Drill type beat. This is not at all what I was expecting going into the song, but wifi’s tenure in the music scene has provided him with more than enough skill to totally body his portions throughout this song.

As he sings the chorus, he sings quick, choppy lines as he combines them with some mumbles and hums, adding some passion to his delivery that combines with the catchy flows he uses in a flawless fashion. After the hook, there is a brief intermission of sorts where he continues to kind of hum and provides ad-libs although, in this part, there is some sort of filter over them that makes them sound somewhat cloudy or even submerged underwater, possibly to complement the title and narrative of the song. After this portion, wifi finally comes in for his first verse where he ditches his singing to provide some more straightforward bars, although the melodious qualities within his voice are obviously still present. Here, he utilizes some slightly uncharacteristic cadences that switch up somewhat constantly, keeping things fresh and inconsistent in the best possible way.

After another chorus, Smoove comes in and provides some much-welcomed differentiation and additional vitality to the record. Although it’s obvious based on his accent, I had to look up where he was from to make sure, and my suspicions were confirmed that he is indeed from Brooklyn, so the fact that they wanted to use a drill-inspired beat makes total sense now. He clearly sounds like he’s right at home on this instrumental and although there are lighter, more tuneful qualities within his voice, there is still this aggression and insistency that just seems to come hardwired into anyone hailing from NYC. As both artists make their way throughout their portions, they both show heavy admiration and love to certain women for their attractive features and striking qualities as they seem to be hollering at these lovely ladies within the song.

Although this might be a slightly uncharacteristic production choice for wifisfuneral, I think he handled it beyond impressively and proved that he can truly make whatever kind of music he strives to create. His voice comes off as being pure and unaffected but there also just seems to be this underlying pain and emotion that is obvious if you know his story and have followed along with the themes he has talked about throughout his career, but it can also be evident even if you’re not familiar with his previous work. I think Smoove’L provides a nice change of pace and variety to the offering and even though his verse wasn’t extremely extensive, he makes his voice heard and his part count. Pain should hopefully come out on the 28th of this month after already being pushed back, and I couldn’t be more excited to hear what else wifisfuneral has in store for us. I hope you feel the same way but regardless, his latest single “Ocean” is a must-listen, so be sure you do so as soon as you get the chance.