Los Angeles musician Jenny Lewis and Chicago based rapper Serengeti, after two years of friendship and trading banter, have come together to release the experimental, atmospheric new single “Unblu.”
“Unblu,” the first release of Lewis and Serengeti’s collaboration, is a cerebral pulsing of emotion and untethered thought. It’s slow, melodic beat winds and pounds out a persistent lull, interlaced with spacey vocals and abstract conversations.
Paired with a random cell phone music video, the song captures a stay-at-home feel while also gently taking us out of our daily doll drums. It’s the perfect tune to play as the centerpiece or ambient backdrop of your daily quarantine life, making it a little more bearable.
What started as a brief encounter at a music festival in East Germany turned into a quick friendship that eventually led to a unique collaboration where Serengeti asked Lewis to write a few songs for him.
While Lewis anticipated writing just one song, after the world shut down from the Covid-19 pandemic, she ended up with five tunes, composed and sent to Serengeti via smartphones.
Adding his poetry to Lewis’ work, the pair also called on Andrew Broder to co-produce and mix the tracks from his quarantine homestead in Minneapolis.
While Lewis has been bunkered in Los Angeles, smoking weed every day, and Serengeti has been staying sober in his home in Chicago, the pair were able to find a way to continue their music and friendship distances and mid-sets apart, queuing into and rising above the melancholy mood and uncertainty of the times through their art and human connection.
For more on Jenny Lewis or Serengeti, make sure to visit each’s respective social media or visit their websites.
Words: Patti Sanchez
