Kali Uchis explores all types of love
Colombian American singer Kali Uchis’s third studio album, “Red Moon in Venus,” was released March 3. Staying true to her established R&B voice, Uchis explores what love means to her.
Inspired by her own interest in astrology, Kali Uchis named the album after Venus, the planet of love, as well as the red moon, which is said to bring chaos and change into an individual’s life. The album is meant to represent “all the different sides of love,” including the chaos it can incite, Uchis said in an interview with Vogue.
True to her word, Uchis succinctly and artfully captures all the different emotions love can bring to listeners.
In the opening track “in My Garden,” Uchis asks wistfully, “Hello? Can you hear me? I just wanted to tell you, in case you forgot: I love you.”
The twenty-five second clip of her question is preceded and followed by birds peacefully chirping in the background. It is the perfect introduction to the rest of her album — relaxed, peaceful and questioning what love feels like.
An array of different song styles guides listeners through an emotional roller-coaster as Uchis depicts different points of view on love. In one track, “Love Between…” Uchis croons softly of how beautiful love can be, singing, “Love between two human beings / Can be so wonderful.”
In another track, “Moral Conscience,” she depicts jealousy and anger, singing “One thing about karma, that bitch will find you.”
Kali Uchis’s music has long-possessed a sultry and relaxing quality, characteristic of the R&B style she takes inspiration from. In “Red Moon in Venus,” Uchis remains true to this voice while still showcasing her versatility through more upbeat tracks like “Happy Now.”
Uchis pushes herself further by exploring different sounds through a few collaborations in her album. Uchis and Omar Apollo complement each other’s voices in the track “Worth the Wait.” In “Fantasy,” Uchis depicts a more playful and buoyant message with American rapper Don Toliver. In “Deserve Me,” Uchis and singer Summer Walker promote self-love and the importance of independence in a relationship by singing lyrics like “I like it better when you’re gone / I feel a little less alone” and “You don’t deserve the love I give you.”
Standout tracks on the album include “I Wish you Roses” and “Moonlight.” “I Wish you Roses” is easily the most listened-to track on the album. In the song, Uchis sings “Just know, any love I gave you’s forever yours to keep,” while the chorus sings, “I wish you love, I wish you well / I wish you roses…”
Evidently, the lyrics resonate with listeners. “I Wish you Roses” clocks in at over 29 million listens on Spotify. In an interview with Pitchfork, Uchis states, “This song is about being able to release people with love.”
“Moonlight” leans into the sultry and relaxed tone that Uchis does so well. The track is just one of the many that Uchis weaves Spanish into with the chorus singing in a mix of English and Spanish, “I just want to get high with my lover / Veo una muñeca cuando miro en el espejo.”
“Moonlight” is the song that most easily embodies the style that Uchis mastered in the past, which may be why listeners are so in love with it. As the second most-listened song on the album, “Moonlight” sits at over 8 million listens on Spotify.
Uchis ends the 15-song album with her track “Happy Now.” After fluidly alternating between such a wide-ranging array of emotions throughout the album, “Happy Now” ultimately leaves listeners in an uplifting and positive mood. Upbeat and optimistic, the lyrics read “Let’s you and me start over today / be happy.”
What makes “Red Moon in Venus” distinctive is Uchis’s particular and unique take on an album on love. This is not a breakup album, nor is it an “I’m in love” kind of album. Instead, this album truly is a detailed genesis of Uchis’s observations on “all the different sides of love,” both negative and positive. Her album artfully delves into how love can be simultaneously painful and rewarding and how love can be complicatedly tied to both hate and anger.