''Normani x Calvin Harris'' is a joint EP by American singer

Normani Normani Kordei Hamilton ( ; born May 31, 1996), known mononymously as Normani, is an American singer. She first became known as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which became one of the best-selling girl groups of all time. While in t ...

and Scottish producer

Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris (and sometimes under the stage name Love Regenerator), is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter. His debut studio album, ''I Created Disco'' (2007 ...

. It was released on October 22, 2018, containing two songs: "Checklist" (featuring

Wizkid Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun (born 16 July 1990), better known as Wizkid, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Born in the Ojuelegba suburb of Surulere, Lagos, Wizkid is a voice in the emerging Afrobeats movement. His music is a blend of Afrobea ...

) and "Slow Down". No singles were released from the EP, however, the song "Checklist" peaked at number one on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s

World Digital Song Sales The World Digital Song Sales chart (formerly World Digital Songs) is a weekly record chart compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by ''Billboard'' magazine. Established in 2010—its first issue was dated January 23—as one of 21 genre-speci ...

chart, and also charted in Ireland and in the United Kingdom; while the song "Slow Down" reached the top 40 on the ''Billboard''s

Dance/Electronic Songs Hot Dance/Electronic Songs (formerly Dance/Electronic Songs) is a record chart has been published weekly by ''Billboard'' since January 2013. It is their first chart to be published that ranks the most popular dance and electronic songs according ...

chart.

Background

According to Normani, Harris reached out to her for the collaboration; she said: "he was like 'yo, what do you think of this?' I was like, 'this sh*t is fire!' I am a huge fan of his." The pair recorded and finished the songs in June 2018. News of the collaboration was revealed in June 2018. Normani teased the project at the 2018 American Music Awards, saying a song was to be released "in the next few days". Normani also posted a short clip online of herself writing "Oct. 22" on a piece of red tape before a voice off-camera tells her to "drop the pen".

Music

The EP features two songs, "Slow Down" and "Checklist" (featuring Nigerian singer

). The former has a groovy,

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

-styled production in which Normani pleads with a lover to return her feelings. Wandera Hussein of ''

The Fader ''The Fader'' is a magazine established in 1999 as an outlet for Cornerstone Agency, a marketing and public relations firm established by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. History and work It is owned by T ...

'' praised Normani's vocal performance by saying the singer sings "heavenly" on the song's hook. "Checklist" features a danceable beat with heavy influences of

Afrobeats Afrobeats, not to be confused with Afrobeat or Afroswing, is an umbrella term to describe popular music from West Africa and the diaspora that initially developed in Ghana, Nigeria, and the UK in the 2000s and 2010s. Afrobeats is less of a st ...

and

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

music. On it, Normani delivers some rapid, half-rapped flirty lines. ''

Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

'' noted that the two tracks feature a production style similar to Harris's 2017 album '' Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1'', "although featuring a more

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

-inspired edge". ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' called the songs "clubby R&B with tropical tinges", saying Normani hits a "bouncy pop stride" on "Checklist", and noting "Slow Down" "does exactly the opposite of what the title teases: it's a slow jam that builds up to a house-y dancefloor burner for the verses".

Track listing

Both songs were produced by Calvin Harris

Charts

"Checklist"

"Slow Down"

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2018 debut EPs Albums produced by Calvin Harris Normani albums Calvin Harris albums 2018 collaborative albums Contemporary R&B EPs House music EPs RCA Records EPs