ILoveMakonnen‘s “Tuesday,” featuring Drake, is one of the most exciting hits of 2014, and also one of the strangest.
Speedy, powerful beats dominated hip-hop and R&B radio this year, but “Tuesday” creeps along, slow and viscous. Makonnen sounds like few singers you’ve heard, with unusual intonations that drift free of conventional benchmarks for vocalists. He stopped by The Tonight Show to play the song live on TV for the first time with help from the Roots. Watch below.
“Tuesday” is currently No. 16 on the Hot 100 and No. 2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart — a remarkable accomplishment for an artist who was relatively unknown outside of Atlanta just a year ago. The Roots back Makonnen during his performance, adding live band embellishments like flecks of guitar and hissing cymbals. (These almost sound out of place — too conventional for the track’s weird landscape.) The singer wore a seasonally appropriate Santa hat and a TOPSZN t-shirt, which are sold by Drake’s OVO label.
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You can watch the official music video for “Tuesday” below.