Rising singer and songwriter Tone Stith has returned with his new EP, P.O.V, via RCA Records.
The seven-track offering includes the previously shared songs “Girls Like You” and “I Need You.” Regarding the latter track, which reached No. 1 on iTunes’ R&B Songs chart, Stith explained to Rated R&B, “It’s my point of view on my first heartbreak.”
“For me, it was a really big deal. I was very green as far as love goes. The first person I was giving my all to, even though it was young love, it was like, ‘I’m here 150%.’ Then, when that person stabbed my back, it was like, ‘You messed it up for everybody else. Now I got this evil side of me.”
Upon its release, Stith’s “Girls Like You” reached No. 6 on Billboard’s R&B Digital Song Sales chart.
On the hazy opener, “Smoking In The Park (Paradise),” Stith and his favorite shorty seclude themselves at their hangout. He encourages her to relax and enjoy blowing gas together. “Perfect time for me to set you free / Underneath the stars feels just like a dream.”
Stith enlists Grammy-winning producer and songwriter Camper (Coco Jones, Usher, The Amours) on “Whoa,” a pillow-biting tune where he boasts of making his lover drench like a waterfall. “Only one getting it wet like that,” he sings.
In a May interview with Rated R&B, Stith shared the inspiration behind his new project, P.O.V, which stands for point of view. “This next project is my point of view on love and the ups and downs in relationships,” Stith stated.
He added, “[It addresses] things that people are afraid to come out and say ‘cause they feel like it might be too soft or too corny. But for me, there’s a lot of toxic things going on in this world, but I wanna be the guy at the forefront that’s like, ‘Hey. It’s okay to love somebody. It’s okay to care for somebody and bet it all on somebody [even when] you don’t know the outcome.’”
P.O.V is the follow-up to Stith’s two 2021 EPs, FWM and Still FWM. The first of the latter two projects earned Stith Rated R&B’s Front + Center cover.
“This is a new introduction. For the people that have heard it, this is a re-introduction. This is different than what I’ve done before. For the new people, now is the time to f*ck with me. Now is the time to get on the train because we’re about to take off and we’re going to keep going,” Stith told Rated R&B about FWM.
FWM included guest appearances from H.E.R., Lonr, and Kiana Ledé. It also included the singles “Like The First Time” and the title track.
Still FWM features cameos from Chris Brown, Maeta, and Kenneth Paige. The seven-track project includes “I Don’t Wanna” and “Something In The Water.”
Stith toured both EPs on two successful headlining North American treks. He also performed at Roots Picnic in 2022.
Listen to Tone Stith’s new project, P.O.V, below.