Primary teams with Lena Park, Yankie, Jessi to rule all via “Hello” & “Just Like U”

I, for one, welcome our new Primary overlord.

And that’s what he’s about to become after the release of his album, which appears to be littered with quality tracks.

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“Hello” features vocalist Lena Park, and the instrumental of the song is infectious.

From the first second of the track, the instrumental engages the listener, and it was impossible for me to not tap my foot and nod my head to the beat. In addition to the (expected) quality of the vocals, I’m glad Lena is getting some shine on what should be a major success of an album.

My one complaint is a general complaint I’ve always had with Lena. She’s a great vocalist and she’s recognized for that, but it’s hard for me to listen to her albums because when she’s not belting the chorus, the verses are a bit too airy compared to the beat for my taste. I think Lena could’ve used a partner on this song for either a change of pace for the listener or so that somebody else could’ve handled the lower register.

Despite that, the song is irresistible to me and I had zero problems enjoying this from start to finish. The 90s tribute music video was a nice bonus, and you know you’ve enjoyed a song when it ends and you find yourself clicking around for that replay button. Track makes you wanna put your hands in the air, man.

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“Just Like U” is the rare type of slow jam rap song I can get behind. When done correctly, the rap and ballad type tracks are great, but more often than not they’re boring tripe. Rap and R&B combos are much more forgiving, but can also quickly become basic and formulaic, especially to Western ears that hear this combination all the damn time. Fortunately, I think Primary hit a balanced mark here, thanks in no small part to Yankie and Jessi.

I’m normally not a big fan of either rapper, but the slower beat required them to slow their flow down and focus more on execution of the lyrics, and I think that benefited both of them. Jessi in particular stands out, both in terms of comedy and because while she’s still doing her Rah Digga impersonation, at least now it’s much more controlled and less erratic.

As for Primary, he excels at making these less bombastic beats into something memorable, and the contrast between the rather calm beat and the explicit “I just wanna fuck” nature of the lyrics is a highlight in itself. I’m not surprised I liked a Primary song, I’m surprised I liked a rap song that stars Yankie and Jessi.

The overlord power, man.