Photo from Genius

There must be something in Toronto‰’s water because they seem to be constantly churning out new musical talent. Consistently, for the past decade, exciting innovations in both rap and R&B have found their way across the border into the hearts and ears of Americans. Budding artist, Daniel Caesar, has made his mark with his debut album, Freudian.

The theme of this album speaks to me as a piece surrounding the beauty and complex nature of love. The fascination of finding “the one‰” is discussed in “Get You.‰” A personal favorite for me would have to be “Hold Me Down,” which is about the struggle of capturing the attention of someone you like. Caesar has no qualms with enjoying the technicality of that love and transforming with that person. Clearly, based on the depth of his work, this artist is a thinker when it comes to relationships. He appears to be very methodical and heartfelt with a certain deliberateness.

Caesar, someone that has historically done solo work, appears to have been very strategic with the features he chose for this album. New and talented artists like Kali Uchis, H.E.R., Syd, and Charlotte Day Wilson all get a chance to shine in Freudian. Each of them bring their own styles while melding well with the grandeur of Caesar‰’s musical production.

In my opinion, this album is definitely something you mull over. I have gone through multiple listenings of it. Not to mention the various times I have put it on whilst falling asleep. His work just seems to put one at peace. There‰’s nothing too volatile or confrontational about one of the songs on his album, and I find that to be very rare nowadays. His songs have titles like, “Blessed,‰” “We Find Love,‰” and “Best Part,‰” and seem to just radiate bliss.