Anthony Hamilton, Love is the New Black | Album Review 💿

Following a five-year hiatus, neo-soul standout Anthony Hamilton returns as strong as ever on Love is the New Black. 

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fter an excruciating five-year wait, 🏆 Grammy-winning, contemporary soul singer/songwriter 🎙 Anthony Hamilton released a brand-new studio album, 💿 Love is the New Black.  The promo leading up to Love is the New Black suggested Mr. Hamilton, one of the most gifted yet underrated R&B musicians, had another hit LP on his hands.   Sure, he’s independent now, but on Love is the New Black, he remains true to self.  From top to bottom, Love is the New Black is consistent.  We’ve come to expect no less from Anthony.

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“Love is the New Black”

On opener ✅ 🎵 “Love is the New Black”, Anthony Hamilton doesn’t miss a beat! He maintains utmost consistency and relentless soulfulness. Being true to Hamilton, it features old-school production, in a retro-/neo-soul style (🎛 Cardiak and 🎛 WU10).  As far as sounds, I love the keys, dramatic, lush strings, and the percussion-fueled groove. Furthermore, I love the fact that the instrumental intro percolates for a good 30+ seconds.  Hamilton does his thing, delivering expressive, soulful vocals and romance-driven songwriting. With a familiar aesthetic and Hamilton in his niche, there’s contrast as well. “Love is the New Black” features only one section, the chorus, which fittingly, emphasizes that “Love is the new Black.”

After the tone is set with “Love is the New Black,” Anthony Hamilton doesn’t let up! 🎵 “Threw It All Away” maintains the soulfulness, no questions asked.  That soulfulness includes synthesized strings, rhythm guitar, a percussive groove, commanding lead, and supportive backing vocals.  The songwriting/theme remain focused on – you guessed it – L-O-V-E, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.  The love (or lack thereof) continues on a prime candidate for best song, ✅ 🎵 “Real Love.”

“Real Love” featuring 🎙 Rick Ross, provides a brilliant balance between old-school and new school.  The neo-soul is firmly in play, amplified by an interpolation of 🎵 “Swahililand” courtesy of 🎙 Ahmad Jamal (💿 Jamal Plays Jamal, 1974). Those syncopated, jazzy chords are nothing short of awesome – epic to the nth degree! Besides that kick ass jazz sample, the beat provides a more contemporary anchor, while also recalling the hip-hop soul of the 90s.  As always, Anthony Hamilton is locked in, blessing the soulful, love-oriented track with his anointed, distinct pipes. As for Ross, he excels at a soulful, old-school beat, so like Anthony, he’s in his zone. “Real Love,” produced by 🎛 9^th Wonder, is ‘really’ good, NO CAP!

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“I’m Ready”

Topping “Real Love” is difficult – it’s elite! No worries, as the trap soul of ✅ 🎵 “I’m Ready” featuring 🎙 Lil Jon is lit too.  “I’m Ready” bears similarities to 🎵 “Amen” (💿 What I’m Feelin’) another trap-soul joint.  One difference is the presence of Lil Jon, which takes us back to the crunk era that dominated the aughts.  Even if crunk has since fallen by the wayside, Jon gives Anthony a lift, and the sound is refreshing. The production by 🎛 B!nk is incredible.  That beat slaps! The soul sample doesn’t hurt either, further fueling Hamilton’s fire. 

From there, Anthony changes things up – well, at least the groove. 🎵 “White Hennessy” opts for a lilting, compound duple meter (or compound quadruple depending how one perceives it).  “White Hennessey” doubles down on the old-school, nostalgic vibes, hearkening back to the glorious sounds of the 70s.  He remains consistent, continuing to wow with his anointed instrument.  He modernizes more on 🎵 “Coming Home,” a fine blend of neo-soul and adult contemporary R&B.  This is grown-n-sexy music, but the groove is hip enough to thrive in 2021.  Once more, Hamilton is dynamic, with the backing vocals matching his magnificence.  There is no doubt regarding authenticity as he puts his all into the performance.

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“You Made a Fool of Me”

On ✅ 🎵 “You Made a Fool of Me”, Hamilton oozes with soul and heartbreak. Lushly produced (🎛 Jermaine Dupri and 🎛 Ramon Montgomery) and idiomatic of neo-soul and adult contemporary R&B, it’s incredibly refreshing for us old souls in 2021. As always, Anthony gives an authentic, expressive, heartfelt, and nuanced performance. As always, he truly ‘gives his all,’ especially easy to do given the circumstances constructed via the songwriting. As the title suggests, [She] “made a fool of” [Him] and doesn’t care about him the way he cared about her.  It’s a classic case of unrequited love as well as cheating since she slept with another man – scandalous!  Hamilton perfectly captures the pain of his heartbreak on this three-and-a-half-minute gem, masterfully preserving the sanctity of soul music.  Everything feels right: the vocals, the lyrics and theme, and production.

Following “You Made a Fool of Me,” a sublime advance single is a tall task. Again, it’s no problem for Anthony Hamilton.  He follows up the adult contemporary/neo-soul smash with another contemporary soul juggernaut, ✅ 🎵 “I Thought We Were in Love”.  Here, the inspiration (and interpolation) is a 🎙 Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes classic 🎵 “I Miss You, Pt. 1”.  Cleverly, the harmonized backing vocals recreate the harmonies, while the melody is inspired and emulates the beloved 70s gem.  It’s most obvious when those celestial, lush backing vocals lift the “Oh, I” but fail to complete the remainder of the lyrics (“…miss you, miss you, miss you”).  Beyond its inspiration, “I Thought We Were in Love” is a fabulous throwback joint in its own right.  It’s a reminder of how accomplished Mr. Hamilton has been throughout his career preserving and recreating soul music.

Keeping it soulful, Hamilton taps 🎙 Jennifer Hudson for a smooth cover of 🎵 “Superstar.” “Superstar” is renowned for its renditions courtesy of 🎙 The Carpenters and later 🎙 Luther Vandross.  Anthony keeps the tempo slow, like the Vandross version.  That said, he ensures he adds his own spin.  Part of that spin is the Hudson guest verse (verse two), as well as an extended outro.  Like much of Love is the New Black, the warmth and lushness of the sound is the big takeaway.  Expectedly, both vocalists ‘put in work’ and ultimately, blend well with one another.

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“Pillows”

Following a classic cover, 🎵 “Pillows” brings Love is the New Black back into the 21^st century.  Hamilton doesn’t shake off the old-school vibes (and why should he), but there’s more ‘contemporary’ to be heard here.  Like everything else, Anthony is on autopilot – consistency exemplified.  That bass line is fabulous by the way.  Moving on, the apology on 🎵 “I’m Sorry” is accepted without question! If “Pillows” leaned more 21^st century, “I’m Sorry” rewinds it back a smidge.  Once more, sampling helps Mr. Hamilton to establish that retro vibe, alongside the soul instrumentation itself – keys, strings, guitar, robust bass line, and groove.  Again, listening to “I’m Sorry,” I can’t compliment Hamilton’s authenticity enough. 

On ✅ 🎵 “Mercy”, Hamilton drops a soulful, socially conscious gem –  arguably, the song to beat on Love is the New Black. Worth noting, activist Tamika D Mallory doesn’t appear on the album version, which is shorter than the original single released in December 2020. Hamilton blesses us with a mix of buttery smooth and gospel-infused pipes.  Throughout the course of this ‘woke’ joint, he petitions for mercy given such struggles experienced by his community.  Further strengthening the messaging, the awesome songwriting is supported by a marvelous backdrop. “Mercy” ends up being a powerful record with a statement perfectly attuned for turbulent times – Black Lives do indeed Matter!  Mr. Hamilton checks off every box.

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“Safe” 

“Mercy” was by far my favorite advance single.  In my opinion, it could’ve concluded Love is the New Black with its transcendent message.  It doesn’t conclude, however, and we get a couple more stellar cuts.  The best of the two is the socially conscious ✅ 🎵 “Safe,” a slight contrast for Hamilton.  To some extent, his voice sounds somewhat different, while the songwriting has a degree of repetitiveness.  After you see where he’s going with the record (the chorus), it marks one of the better moments on a stacked LP.  I appreciate Hamilton’s desire to end the ills plaguing the world and specifically, the black community. 

We all know Anthony loves his mama – he’s sung about her countless times.  On the latest mama song, he urges her not to cry. 🎵 “Mama Don’t Cry” is a fitting coda, seamlessly balancing old- and new- school. This is a slickly produced joint (🎛 DrumDummie and 🎛 Mook), which plays well for the trap generation as well as the traditional crowd.  The melody is killer – tuneful to the nth degree.

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Final Thoughts 💭

I really wish my boy, AH wouldn’t make me wait so long between albums, sigh.  Despite the excruciating five-year wait, Love is the New Black was well worth the wait.  As always, Anthony Hamilton is one of few artists that doesn’t miss when it comes to making a well-rounded, consistent album.  Sure, I picked out some gems that tickle my fancy more than others but overall, the end product is stellar from start to finish.  Hopefully, Hamilton won’t make us wait another five years for a new LP. 

✅ Gems 💎: “Love is the New Black,” “Real Love,” “I’m Ready,” “You Made a Fool of Me,” “I Thought We Were in Love,” “Mercy” & “Safe”

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🎙 Anthony Hamilton • 💿 Love is the New Black • 🏷 My Music Box / BMG Rights Management • 🗓 9.24.21
[📷: My Music Box / BMG Rights Management]

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