Yaya Bey
do it afraid
Release Date: Jun 20, 2025
Genre(s): R&B
Record label: drink sum wtr
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Album Review: do it afraid by Yaya Bey
Excellent, Based on 2 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
Even her last album, the well-polished Ten Fold, included distinct flashes of mercuriality, Bey juxtaposing idyllic scenes (of clouds and flowers, for example) with repeated acknowledgement that all things fade (death is ever-present). Still, while contemporising the R&B genre, Bey clearly drew from feel-good 70s and 80s sources, as well as the laid-back sides of Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and D'Angelo. With do it afraid, Bey reaffirms and deepens this alignment, reveling in slinky melodies, dreamy timbres, and casual yet enticing vocals.
Opinion: Excellent
Yaya Bey's 'do it afraid ' is the soothing remedy we need right now. A wholehearted celebration of joy and love, Bey cites this album as a rejection of past narratives projected onto her – a reclamation of her story. Gemini-natured in its duality, it's simultaneously grounded in the realism of life's challenges and sprinkled with a bit of fantasy.
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