You ever hear a music and instantly suppose, “Oh yeah, this one’s about to be in every single place?” That’s precisely how I felt the primary time I heard “Neglect About You”, the newest single from American Idol alums Ajii and Wé Ani. It’s moody, it’s vibey, and it’s received that excellent mixture of heartbreak and swagger that makes for a very unforgettable breakup anthem.
Ajii, who wowed audiences on Idol Season 22 together with his genre-blending performances, groups up with Wé Ani, who made waves in Season 21 (and The Voice earlier than that). Collectively, they’ve created one thing particular—a observe that’s catchy, emotional, and filled with replay worth.
First issues first, let’s discuss in regards to the manufacturing. This music knocks. Producer Alex Poeppel provides us a slick, trendy beat infused with what Ajii described as a Jersey membership power, which makes it unattainable to sit down nonetheless whereas listening. The pulsing rhythm and layered melodies make it a kind of tracks that really feel recent but additionally timeless—you would hear it enjoying in a dimly lit membership, in a automotive at evening, or by means of your AirPods whereas staring dramatically out the window.
And let’s not ignore the hook. At some point I, I’ll overlook about you… It’s easy, it’s hypnotic, and it’s going to be caught in your head for days. There’s one thing in regards to the repetition that feels nearly therapeutic, like chanting it sufficient instances will truly make the heartbreak fade away. (Spoiler: It gained’t, however it will make you are feeling cooler whereas coping with it.)
Ajii’s verse is available in easy however heavy, setting the tone for the emotional push and pull of the music. His strains—
“I don’t wanna discuss with no one
And stroll with no one
They received nothing on you…”
—hit deep as a result of we’ve all been there. That post-breakup stage the place everybody else simply feels meh compared to the one individual you may’t shake? Yeah, that.
Then Wé Ani is available in and utterly modifications the power. If Ajii’s verse is sulking in heartbreak, Wé’s is straight-up calling it out.
“As I recall, I used to be your Barbie doll
Confirmed me off and all
Blood and all…”
Whew. She snaps on this verse. You’ll be able to really feel the frustration, the exhaustion, the I’m-so-over-this-but-also-maybe-not. Her supply is sharp and exact, including a fiery distinction to Ajii’s smoothness. It’s the type of back-and-forth dynamic that makes you are feeling such as you’re eavesdropping on a real-life dialog between two exes who nonetheless have a little bit an excessive amount of to say.
After which, simply if you suppose the music has mentioned the whole lot it must, that third verse brings each voices collectively in probably the most obsessive, poisonous, and sincere means attainable:
“Want you once I’m on that rum
You realize I’m one for one
I want you dangerous like a lung
Child I don’t breathe for enjoyable…”
It’s messy, it’s dramatic, and it’s actual.
It wouldn’t be stunning if this music blows up on TikTok the identical means different Idol alums like Francisco Martin have leveraged the app-based platform to achieve huge audiences. It’s the proper mixture of earworm melodies and relatable feelings that make songs stick in right now’s streaming-heavy world.
Ajii and Wé Ani are proving that you simply don’t need to win American Idol to win within the music business. Their voices are dynamic, their chemistry is simple, and Neglect About You is precisely the type of observe that may catapult them to the following degree.
So if you happen to haven’t listened but—what are you ready for? Flip it up, sing alongside, and if you happen to’ve received an ex lingering in your head, properly… this may simply be the music that lastly helps you overlook about them.
Mindy McCall
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