Same | 5ive Songs

1. serpentwithfeet, “Same Size Shoe”

DEACON • Secretly Canadian • 2021

“Can’t love no man ‘til I measured his feet,” alternative R&B artist serpentwithfeet (Josiah Wise) asserts on “Same Size Shoe”. “Same Size Shoe” is arguably the best song from his sophomore album, DEACON.  Later, Wise heeds the advice of his aunt singing, “My auntie’s right, don’t fuck a man / If his shoes are two times the size of your hands.” Woo!

Besides the unique lyricism of the record, serpentwithfeet delivers an expressive, nuanced, and truly refined vocal performance. His best moments include the ad-libs, the bridge where he asks for his trumpet (you just have to hear it for yourself), and of course, the chorus.  The chorus, as to expected, is infectious to the nth degree: “Me and my boo wear the same size shoe.” Additionally, the production (Wise, Brandon Juhans, and Batu) allures as well.

2. Jack Harlow, “Same Guy”

Ft. Adam Levine

Thats What They All Say • Generation Now / Atlantic • 2020

“I can’t keep lettin’ shit slide /Thought that I would change, but I’m the same guy.” Okay… Anyways, the most surprising collaboration on Thats What They All Say, the debut album by Louisville, Kentucky-bred, Grammy-nominated rapper Jack Harlow, is “Same Guy.”  Here, Harlow taps Adam Levine for the assist (primarily on the chorus). “Same Guy” is an interesting record by all means, and jetsonmade definitely delivers some cool production touches (“Oh Lord, Jetson made another one”).

“Same Guy” isn’t a tour de force.  Neither is Thats What They All Say overall. Still, there’s plenty to like about the record.  For one, the riffing falsetto by Levine is win.  Furthermore, the gospel vibes, elevated by an appearance by Jason Clayborn & The Atmosphere Changers makes it among the best of Thats What They All Say.

3. Camila Cabello, “Never Be the Same”

Camila • Epic •  2018

Hard drums anchor the well-produced ( Frank Dukes) “Never Be the Same”, the opener from Camila.  Camila marked the Grammy-nominated debut studio album from former Fifth Harmony standout, Camila Cabello. In addition to Camilla herself, “Never Be the Same” was penned by a team comprised of Adam Feeney, Jacob Ludwig Olofsson, Leon Rami Dawod, Noonie Bao and Sasha Yatchenko.

On the verses, Cabello never pushes her voice much. Her stunning falsetto shows up, in all its sexiness and sweetness, beginning on the pre-chorus. Cabello exhibits the most vocal oomph during the high-flying chorus.

“It’s you babe
And I’m a sucker for the way that you move, babe
And I could try to run, but it would be useless
You’re to blame
Just one hit of you, I knew I’ll never be the same.”

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4. Tame Impala, “New Person, Same Old Mistakes”

Currents • Modular • 2015

“Feel like a brand-new person / (But you’ ll make the same old mistakes) / I don’t care, I’m in love / (Stop before it’s too late).” Kevin Parker is an incredibly talented musician.  The Tame Impala brainchild certainly makes no mistakes in regard to the quality of “New Person, Same Old Mistakes.”  The closing song from the band’s 2015 album, Currents, says it all:

“All the signs I don’t read
Two sides of me can’t agree
Will I be in too deep?
Going with what I always longed for.”

While Parker has “changed” for the better, he still admits his flaws – the same old pitfalls.  Notably, Rihanna covered this record (as “Same Ol’ Mistakes”) on her 2016, Grammy-nominated album, Anti.

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5. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, “Same Love”

Ft. Mary Lambert

The Heist • Macklemore • 2012

“For those that like the same sex had the characteristics / The right-wing conservatives think it’s a decision,” Macklemore asserts on “Same Love,” continuing, “And you can be cured with some treatment and religion / Man-made, rewiring of a predisposition, playing God.” Rap music typically isn’t the go-to for LGBTQ+ friendly music but Macklemore, Ryan Lewis, and openly gay singer/songwriter Mary Lambert, aimed to shift that perception on this standout from the Grammy-winning rap album, The Heist.

Macklemore isn’t gay but supports the LGBTQ+ community wholeheartedly.  Throughout the song, he references the fears that folks have about same-sex relationships (“America the brave still fears what we don’t know / And ‘God loves all his children’ is somehow forgotten”) and how hip-hop is on the wrong-side of the issue. Lambert locks down “Same Love” on the chorus, specifically the lyric, “She keeps me warm.”

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