Elmiene may not be ready to serve his debut album just yet, but that isn’t stopping the rising singer from keeping his growing fan base fed. The British-Sudanese artist has released his new mixtape, Heat The Streets, via Polydor/Def Jam Recordings.
The 12-track offering, preceded by “Useless (Without You),” includes a few interludes — impromptu in-studio moments — to give it its mixtape feel in the streaming age.
Among the project’s highlights are the D’Angelo-inspired “Miss Hot July” and the lovelorn “Dull Jewellery.” The former follows a crush who ignites Elmiene’s heart, while the latter finds him in deep reflection post-breakup.
“Now I wish I could’ve gave you more of what you had / Why did you have to leave for me to understand?” he sings on “Dull Jewellery.”
On the closing track, “You’ve Got A Friend,” he puts an R&B spin on singer-songwriter Carole King’s 1971 classic.
Heat The Streetswas primarily produced by Jeff “Gitty” Gitelman, with contributions from The Kount, Ghostnote, Ozmoses ArKetex and Gray Toomey.
Heat The Streets is the follow-up to For The Departed and Anyway I Can. The latter EP includes the D’Mile-produced ballad “Crystal Tears.”
Stream Elmiene’s Heat The Streets mixtape below.