“The DJs, world-famous. The design, futuristic. The carpet, shag.” – Nico Bryant on Centro Fly.
Is R&B entering a new nostalgic period?
You may find yourself asking that question from the first moments of Nico Bryant’s latest album, IN MY WORLD. The stylings here are varied, seamlessly moving across 70s, 80s and 90s with songs that can’t help but make you reminisce about Stevie Wonder, Bryan McKnight, Parliament Funkadelic, D’Angelo and others.
The “Delawarean Soulquarian”, Nico Bryant who classifies his amalgamation of Soul, Hip-hop, R&B and Funk as “Jukebox Soulquarianstankadelic”, is the singer, composer and producer on many of the tracks on his recently released project. Bryant is a dedicated student of the classics, showing off his production and composition prowess in his ability to evoke the sounds of past eras that haven’t been mainstreamed in a very long time.
There’s plenty of Danceable grooves to be found on IN MY WORLD, particularly on tracks Last Thing I Wanna Do and Centro Fly, but also some in-your-feelings ballads with How Many Tears and EXcuse Me (For Loving You) (which feels like it was pulled directly out of Stevie Wonder’s songbook).
The cover of IN MY WORLD shows Nico in a variety of fits, matching his ability to vary his musical style. We should all look forward to seeing his songwriting and style mature into something even greater.
Hear Nico Bryant on The Philly Soul Now 2024 Playlist and follow him on Instagram @whoisnicobryant