''True'' is the first

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

(EP) by American singer and songwriter

Solange Solange may refer to: People with the given name * Solange Knowles (born 1986), American R&B/soul singer * Solange of Bourges (d. 880), Christian saint * Solange (psychic) (1952–2021), Italian TV personality, psychic and commentator * Solange A ...

, first released on November 27, 2012 digitally through

Terrible Records Terrible (formerly Terrible Records) is a Los Angeles-based record label and artist management company founded by Chris Taylor and Ethan Silverman in 2009. Originally based in Brooklyn, New York, the label operated as a joint venture imprint o ...

. Following the release of her second studio album ''

Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams ''Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams'' is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter Solange. It was released on August 26, 2008, by Geffen Records. Solange was heavily influenced by the "Motown Sound" of the 1960s and 1970s prio ...

'' (2008), Solange announced that she had parted ways with

Interscope Geffen A&M Interscope Geffen A&M Records (IGA) is an American umbrella label operating as a unit of Interscope Capitol Labels Group, owned by Universal Music Group. It currently consists of record labels Interscope Records (with its subsidiary, A&M Records) ...

after releasing just one album on the label, and further revealed that she had chosen to go an independent route, eventually signing with

. In 2009, Solange began the recording of a studio album, during which she suffered a " breakdown" due to the amount of time and emotion she was putting into the recording process. A

neo soul Neo soul (sometimes called progressive soul) is a genre of popular music. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from Soul music, soul ...

album, ''True'' contains an eclectic sound that takes influence from

PBR&B Alternative R&B (also referred to as alt-R&B, indie R&B, and originally known as PBR&B, hipster R&B, emo R&B, or R-Neg-B) is a term used by music journalists to describe a stylistic alternative to contemporary R&B that began in the mid 2000s ...

new wave music New wave is a music genre that encompasses pop music, pop-oriented styles from the 1970s through the 1980s. It is considered a lighter and more melodic "broadening of Punk subculture, punk culture". It was originally used as a catch-all fo ...

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

, 1980s pop, and

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...

, whilst the extended play's production is characterized as containing '80s references, keyboards and African percussion. The recording process took three years and was handled by Solange and producer

Dev Hynes Devonté Hynes (born David Joseph Michael Hynes, 23 December 1985), also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, composer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, ...

. Together the pair produced, wrote and composed all of the songs, a decision Solange made due to their chemistry, friendship and work relationship. Upon release ''True'' received generally positive reviews from music critics. Commercially, the EP debuted at number 157 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 as well as charting within the top sixty of the albums charts in

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

and Sweden. The album was promoted with the release of three singles including " Losing You" and was further promoted with a tour of the United States, United Kingdom, Netherlands, France and Germany.

Background

In 2007, Solange signed a record deal with Geffen and a publishing contract with

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

. The following year, she finished working on her second studio album ''

''. A collection of 1960s- and 1970s-influenced songs, it was considered a departure from her R&B-oriented debut upon its release in August 2008. By December 2008, the album had sold over 114,000 copies according to

Nielsen SoundScan Luminate Data, LLC (formerly MRC Data and P-MRC Data) is a provider of music and entertainment data. Established as a joint-venture in 2020, it brought together Nielsen Music, Alpha Data (formerly BuzzAngle Music) and Variety Business Intellige ...

. The album was positively received by critics, some of whom considered it far better than her debut. In support of the album, Solange began the Solange Presents Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams Tour in Britain in November 2008. The song "

T.O.N.Y. "T.O.N.Y." (an abbreviation of "The Other Night Y?") is a song by American singer Solange Knowles, Solange. It was written and produced by Jack Splash and Cee-Lo Green for her second studio album ''Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams'' (2008) and ...

" was the third and final single to be lifted from the album in April 2009. In October of the same year, Solange announced on her

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

account that she had parted ways with

after releasing just one album on the label, and further revealed that she had chosen to go

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

with her next album, stating that "although it's been a wonderful journey and experience at Interscope Records, after truly recognizing what's important to ME as an artist, I decided it was time for me to continue my path on a more independent platform ..I'm excited about continuing to dive in, experiment and creating music and art with no boundaries, fears or expectations. Gonna be fun folks."

Recording

Lightspeed Champion at Primavera Sound Festival

In an interview with ''

Vibe Vibe, alternatively '' vibes,'' is short for ''vibration''. A "vibe" is an emotional reaction to the aura or energy felt to belong to a person, place or thing. Vibe may also refer to: People * DJ Vibe (born 1968), Portuguese DJ * Lasse Vibe (b ...

'' on July 7, 2010, Solange said she suffered "a little bit of a breakdown" while recording her new album: "I literally gave up my sanity for a while to do this record. ..We literally were waking up in the morning and just making music all day and all night. ..It just started to wear on me in so many different ways. I started having these crazy

panic attack Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense fear and Comfort, discomfort that may include palpitations, otherwise defined as a Tachycardia, rapid, Arrhythmia, irregular Heart rate, heartbeat, Hyperhidrosis, sweating, chest pain or discomfort, s ...

s." Solange explained how she made sacrifices "mentally, emotionally and financially", and continued, "It's more than an album to me. It's a transitional time in my life." Regarding the musical direction of the album, she said the inspiration came from new wave and stated, "This is a

record, but the lyrics can get pretty dark at times." The extended play was recorded in five cities including Santa Barbara, LA,

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, NYC, and on the German autobahn.

began work with

Theophilus London Theophilus Musa London (born February 23, 1987) is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. He is best known for his guest appearance alongside Allan Kingdom and Paul McCartney on Kanye West's 2015 single " All Day", which peaked at num ...

, who called Solange stating that he had just been working on a record with Hynes and thought she should have been a part of it.Exclusive Q&A: Solange Talks ‘True’ EP, New Label, & Next Album , Rap-Up
/ref> Following the call, Solange visited Theophilus at the studio, where she met Dev and after hearing his music, the two embarked on a friendship and a working relationship. Solange stated that the EP's recording process was done over a two-year period, but the first six months was a period where Solange and Dev Hynes swapped ideas and established a cohesive sound. Over the next two years, the pair co-wrote and co-produced thirty songs, with "Locked in Closets" and "Don't Let Me Down" being the first two songs to be recorded. During the recording of ''True'', Solange worked with

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973), also known mononymously as Pharrell, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. He first became known as one half of the music production duo ...

amongst other producers, however the songs were never used for the extended play. Whilst in Santa Barbara, where the pair first started to work together, they were experimenting with different sounds, different sonics and different collaborators. There were other producers who were working with them and Solange stated "it just became really clear to me that the music me and Dev were creating together was very special, and from then I just transitioned into wanting Dev to produce the record." Whilst recording ''True'', Solange took influence from production duo

Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III (born June 6, 1959) and Terry Steven Lewis (born November 24, 1956) are an American R&B/ pop songwriting and record production team. Their productions have received commercial success since the 1980s with var ...

, known for their work with

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

as well as listening to large amounts of SOS Band and

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...

, records that were also produced by Jimmy Jam.

Music and lyrics

Consisting of seven tracks, ''True'' is primarily in the

genre but contains an eclectic sound that takes influence from R&B,

, 1980s pop, and

. Solange stated she was inspired by

and that "This is a

record, but the lyrics can get pretty dark at times." During an interview Solange confirmed that she had been experimenting with a moody,

electronic sound ''Electronic Sound'' is the second studio album by the English rock musician George Harrison. Released in May 1969, it was the last of two LPs issued on the Beatles' short-lived Zapple Records, Zapple record label, a subsidiary of Apple Records t ...

for her next project. Nick Levine of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

compared the extended play to the work of Madonna and described its music structure as a "tribute to early 80s pop-RnB music", stating the EP's production contains sweet keyboard sounds and beats that sound like that of a "battered old Casio drum machine." A reviewer from Pitchfork described the songs as having no huge choruses but instead "its hooks bubble up quietly and quickly, then dissipate as the songs return to their downbeat simmer". The same reviewer stated that Hynes plays with non-traditional structures, letting the songs meander in and out of grooves. The album was described as containing no "filler" and an accessible and authentic piece of pop. The EP's songs have a diaphanous new wave via synth funk sound that was compared to the work of Little Dragon by Andy Kellman of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. The lyrical content of the album details a relationship gone wrong that "provide aching, wistful, and frustrated contrast to the animated and slowly swaying backdrops" according to Kellman from AllMusic.

Songs

The opening track and lead single "Losing You" is a R&B song with

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

and

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

music, described as having a "pleasantly upbeat" sound that lyrically speaks about love that has become complicated.Solange Previews ‘True’ EP at New York Listening Party , Rap-Up
/ref> Philip Sherburne of ''Spin'' magazine called "Losing You" a "remarkable song in its own right, with a breezy fusion of singer- centric R&B,

1980s pop : ''For music from a year in the 1980s, go to 1980 in music, 80 , 1981 in music, 81 , 1982 in music, 82 , 1983 in music, 83 , 1984 in music, 84 , 1985 in music, 85 , 1986 in music, 86 , 1987 in music, 87 , 1988 in music, 88 , 1989 in musi ...

, and lanky, mid-tempo

hip house Hip house, also known as rap house or house rap, is a musical genre that mixes elements of house music and hip-hop, which originated in both London and Chicago in the mid-to-late 1980s. A British collaboration between the electronic group Beatm ...

beats." He felt the song was breakaway from the "R&B-gone-

electronic dance music Electronic dance music (EDM), also referred to as dance music or club music, is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs, raves, and List of electronic dance music festivals, festivals. It is generally ...

tracks" and commented that it was also "remarkable for what it suggests about the direction of pop music right now; it feels like one of those moments when something lurking just below the surface of the zeitgeist breaks through in a big way." The second track "Some Things Never Seem to Fucking Work" is lyrically about "ultimatums and questions, Solange ponders the illusion of a relationship". "Locked in Closets" was described as having a beat "reminiscent of

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

in his 'Smooth Criminal' prime", and continues the theme of "addictive love". The fourth song "Lovers in the Parking Lot" is a soulful pop song with "futuristic and tropical" sounds and production, containing a slow tempo with a

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

riff in which Solange "regretfully admits she played around with somebody's heart". "Don't Let Me Down" was described as "playful, with an aggressive beat" and described as setting the "foundation for a hip-hop track". Speaking about "Don't Let Me Down", Solange said; "Looks Good with Trouble" is a

song that has been compared to the work of

the Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...

containing minimalist and sleek production, with heavy synths and echos. The song begins heavy on the bass, reverb, and sultry harmonies, but the methodical approach ends rather abruptly. The EP's final track "Bad Girls" (Verdine Version) contains a

falsetto Falsetto ( , ; Italian language, Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ...

and was described as an "unapologetic tune". Like the previous song, "Bad Girls" (Verdine Version) is a PBR&B song, the song has a funkier bass line and synths, with the song again adopting a confessional tone that is both disconnected and restricted.

Release and promotion

Solange previewed the seven-track EP in New York City on October 24, 2012 to positive reviews. Solange and Dev Hynes hosted a second listening party at

Sonos Studio Sonos Studio is an art gallery and studio in Los Angeles, United States, established on May 9, 2012, and owned by American consumer electronics company Sonos. The studio has also had temporary pop-up locations in New York City, London, and Am ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on November 27, the date of the EP's digital release. New York-based artist

Mickalene Thomas Mickalene Thomas (born January 28, 1971) is a contemporary African-American visual artist best known as a painter of complex works using rhinestones, acrylic, and enamel.

is responsible for the EP's visual presentation. The limited edition version of "True" was released on March 11, 2013. Thomas described the limited edition artwork as a collage which was shot at the Lehmann Maupin gallery located in the

SoHo SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

section of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. When asked about the creative process she detailed recomposing the photographs with materials such as Color-aid, vintage wallpaper, and some old drawings from her days as a student at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

. She also noted her attention to detail for texture and color. Thomas also designed the set for the EP's lead single, "Losing You" music video; a set which Solange referred to as "brilliant". When asked about it she described the project as a "very cool experience!" and noted researching images of Solange to identify what particular style she would create. To assure how hands-on she was with the design she stated, "I design every last inch—down to the outlets, faux flowers, books, and records—as they create a cohesive setting and context. No detail is overlooked." "Losing You" was released in preparation of the album and was written by

and Solange, with production helmed by the former under his pseudonym

Blood Orange The blood orange is a variety of orange (fruit), orange with crimson, near blood-colored flesh. It is one of the sweet orange varieties (Citrus × sinensis, ''Citrus'' × ''sinensis''). It is also known as the raspberry orange. The dark flesh ...

along with

Kevin Barnes Kevin Lawrence Barnes (born May 30, 1974) is an American musician who is the singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter for the indie rock group of Montreal, part of the Elephant 6 Collective. Barnes started the band and, although providing ...

. Serving as the lead single from the album, the song was released for digital download on October 2, 2012 and on November 6, 2012 on

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

via

, a label co-run by

Grizzly Bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horr ...

's Chris Taylor. In May 2013, Solange premiered the remix of her song "Look Good with Trouble" featuring

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, he was awarded the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, becoming the first music ...

; she then revealed it would be the second single from the EP, and stated the original was "only an opener" for "Bad Girls". "Look Good with Trouble" was released as the second single from the EP on May 14, 2013. The third and final single "Lovers in the Parking Lot" was released on September 18, 2013. Solange announced a small tour in promotion of ''True'' and to celebrate her return to music. It was her first tour since 2009.

Critical reception

''True'' received generally favorable reviews from critics. At

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, which assigns a

normalized Normalization or normalisation refers to a process that makes something more normal or regular. Science * Normalization process theory, a sociological theory of the implementation of new technologies or innovations * Normalization model, used in ...

rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an

average In colloquial, ordinary language, an average is a single number or value that best represents a set of data. The type of average taken as most typically representative of a list of numbers is the arithmetic mean the sum of the numbers divided by ...

score of 79, based on 16 reviews. Sam Wolfson of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' wrote: "The 26-year-old is not a hit-making pop star, but an antidote to pop homogenisation; something that sounds different to everything on the radio, but could still be on the radio. On that front, ''True'' delivers." ''

Paste Paste is a term for any very thick viscous fluid. It may refer to: Science and technology * Adhesive or paste ** Wallpaper paste ** Wheatpaste, a liquid adhesive made from vegetable starch and water * Paste (rheology), a substance that behaves as ...

'' called it "funky" and noted its "bold synths" as "sound nglike '80s-era Madonna". ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' praised the album, saying "The strong '

80s Nostalgia 1980s nostalgia is nostalgia for certain aspects of the 1980s. 1980s nostalgia is a form of decade nostalgia. 1980s retro is retro related to the 1980s. 1980s revival is the revival of some aspect or aspects of the 1980s. Duration and geography ...

here could wear thin for some, but Solange's singular charms stretch far".

Commercial performance

''True'' first charted in Denmark on the

Tracklisten Hitlisten (), formerly known as Tracklisten, is a Danish top 40 record chart that is updated every Wednesday at midnight on the website hitlisten.nu. The weekly Danish singles chart combines the 40 best-selling tracks from streaming and legal mus ...

chart, peaking at number forty.danishcharts.dk - Discography Solange
/ref> The EP also charted on the Swedish albums chart (

Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan (, lit. "the Sweden top list") is the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from IFPI Sverige. It was formerly known as Topplistan (1975–1997) and Hitlistan (1998–2007) and has been known by its current name si ...

)''True'' on the Swedish Albums Chart
/ref> at number fifty-seven, and reached 164 on the

French albums chart SNEP (, in English National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing) is the inter-professional organisation that protects the interests of the French record industry. Originally known under the acronym SNICOP, the organisation was established in 1 ...

. In the United States the EP debuted at 157 on the ''Billboard'' 200, becoming Solange's third release to chart but her first not to reach the top fifty.

Track listing

The track listing was announced by ''

Rap-Up ''Rap-Up'' is a magazine launched in 2001 by founder Devin Lazerine. The publication was originally a website devoted to hip hop, until Lazerine decided to pitch the possibility of a magazine to several publishers. The magazine is focused on the ...

'' magazine on October 25, 2012. All tracks are written by Solange Knowles and Dev Hynes.

Personnel

Credits for ''True'' adapted from

. *

Solange Knowles Solange Piaget Knowles (; born June 24, 1986) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She expressed an interest in music from an early age and had temporary stints as a backup dancer for Destiny's Child, which featured her older sister ...

– vocals, producer, writer (all tracks) *

– producer, writer (all tracks), additional background vocals * Chris Egan – live drums (on "Locked in Closets" and "Don't Let Me Down") *

Verdine White Verdine Adams White (born Verdine Adams Jr.; July 25, 1951) is an American musician, best known as a founding member and bassist for the band Earth, Wind & Fire. White was placed at No. 19 on Rolling Stone's list oThe 50 Greatest Bassists of Al ...

– bass (on "Bad Girls") *

Mikaelin 'Blue' Bluespruce Mikaelin 'Blue' Bluespruce is an American, New York City based mix engineer and record producer. He has worked with notable artists of many different genres including: Solange Knowles, Nas, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Skepta, Dev Hynes, Marsha Ambrosius, ...

– album engineer (Lounge Studios, NYC) * Rommel Nino Villanueva – additional engineering (on "Locked in Closets", "Don't Let Me Down" and "Bad Girls") * Chris Taylor – additional mixing (on "Losing You") *

Ariel Rechtshaid Ariel Rechtshaid ( ;) is an American record producer, audio engineer, mixing engineer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter. His accolades include three Grammy Awards for music production. Rechtshaid was the lead singer and guitarist of the ska ...

– additional mixing (on "Losing You" and "Bad Girls") *

Joe LaPorta Joseph J. LaPorta (born January 19, 1980) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in Edgewater, New Jersey. Career LaPorta was born in New York and grew up there; he graduated from New York University with a bachelor's degree in ...

– album mastering (Lounge Studios, NYC)

Charts

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2012 debut EPs Albums produced by Dev Hynes Terrible Records EPs Solange Knowles albums Neo soul EPs