LEYET - "MY MOOD LATELY" IS EXEMPLARY POP AND BEYOND

I don't think I've ever heard a voice quite like LeyeT's as presented in her new music video "My Mood Lately".  No two voices are exactly alike, of course, but there are pitch and intonation trends that are very much palpable across all eras of music,  and while LeyeT's style is firmly contemporary, there's also a very unique feeling and sound to her vocals that I just haven't noticed anywhere else. The closest I can come up to describing it would be like a blend of Yukimi Nagano and Katy Perry, and even then I don't think that's right.

The Particularity of LeyeT's voice gives her an immediately obvious edge that catches your attention and pulls you in very quickly. Where is this song taking me? what else can she do? Have I heard anything like this before? Musically, sure you have, the sound is clean and open, infused with textbook electro/house textures and beats, merely a backdrop to the real focus and melody maker in the song: The vocals,

"My Mood Lately" starts off perfectly. Serene, curious, inviting. "Think I could use a uh/Emotional getaway/Get me out my head ‘cause uh/I’m bout to have a break" Then it gives way to an entrancing and upbeat follow-up, a shift in mood, poignantly reminding us we're the primary architects of our own emotional states. The song plays off on the paradoxes and alternating moods that hit everybody in isolation and frustration. Something seems to be eating at LeyeT in this song the same way it was eating at me last Wednesday. The same way it was eating at somebody else just this morning. 

There is a relatable familiarity to the way the lyrics seem to zig and zag between one analogy and the next, between one problem and the other, yet they never dwell on any melodramatic victimhood or bitterness. Her vocals and overall cheerful sound do not leave any room for self-pity and wallowing, it's more like poking fun at all these situations and feelings, robbing them of their power over you completely. This is particularly strong in the way she intones the Song's title at the 1:12 mark of the music video, where LeyeT reaches the apex of playfulness and roguish charm by transforming the moment into a soundboard zinger and Twitter reply Gif. It's so unbelievably cheeky, I have to laugh at how perfectly it comes out.

Between Leyet's witty and sassy songwriting and her peculiar and rather unique vocals, we're left with a very sweet aftertaste. In a strange way, it was difficult to realize that this was an extremely catchy high-energy pop banger, for me, there was much more going on and I was so focused on trying to catch and appreciate every little detail of her voice.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Samuel Aponte is Venezuelan-born raised and based. 

I joined Rival Magazine after a few years of doing PR work for independent musicians of all stripes; understanding their struggles to be heard in a sea of constant  ADHD noise and paywalled access to platforms, I now bring a willingness to always appreciate and encourage the effort and creativity that artists put into their work . Can also find some of my writings on LADYGUNN and We Found New Music.