Following the release of his stunning new single 'Melody' (which you can listen to above), Barbados-born R&B artist Robbi Niles has begun to gain critical acclaim and is being touted as one to watch. Listening to his unique atmospheric R&B sound we were intrigued to find out more... We caught up with Robbi to chat about his influences and find out what 5 songs most inspire his music.
1. Paranoid – Chase Atlantic
I stumbled across the band Chase Atlantic on an R& B Spotify Play List and I’ve been listening to them ever since then! I could choose several of their songs to fill this position, but they are so good that the music just keeps speaking for itself. This song, Paranoid, is the first track off their latest album ‘Beauty in Death”. The dark undertones of this song plus impactful lyrics plus an amazing guitar solo = A very happy Robbi!
Fun Fact -Spotify told me that I’m in the top 0.5% of their listeners across the world!"
2. Years Go By – Bryson Tiller
From the time I heard the intro monologue I knew this track was for me. Bryson speaks truth about a real challenge we all face – “..worrying about or tryna to figure out what they, if they gon’ like it or not aw man, you gonna have about five years go by. Next thing you know you ent gon’ wanna do this no more”. The long and short of it is that you just got to keep your head down and do it! I use this as my daily mantra.
3. Cold - Boy in Space, Unheard
I love this song! I was playing NBA 2K21 with my friends and I stumbled across this song in the soundtrack. What caught me was the melodies being sung on top of the beat. They were so catchy. After listening to it for about 50 times in one go, I realized just how impactful the lyrics were and how closely I related to them. I recommend this song to everyone I meet.
4. Smoking Out the Window – Silk Sonic
Bruno Mars and Anderson.Paak can honestly do no wrong! Their level of musicianship, melody composition, and lyrical content are all at a high level I aspire to reach and perfect. I have never heard a ‘heartbreak song’ sung so sweetly in recent times. There definitely were times in my life where I was “smoking out the window”.
5. Lockdown – Koffee
Being from an island in the Caribbean, I feel Koffee’s vibe and hold a special place in my heart for dancehall music. This song perfectly captures what I was feeling during the lockdown at the height of the Covid -19 pandemic last year. There is a perfect marriage between her beautiful melodies and the beat. Definitely a song I would recommend for any road trip.