Rising R&B-pop singer Josh Levi has released his debut album,Hydraulic, via Issa Rae’s Raedio and Atlantic Records.
The project includes the previously shared songs “Feel The Ba$$ (Prelude)” featuring BEAM, “Don’t Go” and “Hold On,” as well as his viral “Birthday Dance,” which is a bonus track.
Hydraulic takes listeners on a 40-minute drive along the winding roads of love and life. On the opener, “Rodeo,” produced by London On Da Track, Levi asserts that he’s no novice in matters of the heart: “Heartbroken, I’ve been that / In love, I did that / Tripped up, never fell back, oh / No, this ain’t my first rodeo.”
In a way, “Rodeo” sets the tone for the rest of the album, as Levi bounces from themes of unrequited love (“Empty”) and longing (“Care 4 Me”) to uncertainty (“Hold On”) and aching memories (“The Room”). On the latter, produced by MNEK, Levi is haunted by love lost, even as he tries to move on: “Every time I’m loving on someone new, it’s like you’re right there in the room.”
But all love isn’t lost. Songs like “Say It” and the FLO-assisted “Crash Out” capture the playful side of romance. “I’ma make you crash out ’til you tap out / Take the long route, it’s about to go down,” Levi sings in “Crash Out.”
Towards the tail end of Hydraulic, Levi slows the pace to cruise through reflections about everyday life — specifically what weighs on his heart.
On “Burnt Out,” produced by Troy Taylor, Levi delivers an honest confession of emotional fatigue and the desire to self-isolate as a coping mechanism. He ends the song with a heartfelt prayer: “Dear Lord, please give me strength / On how to understand this weird world / Show me the way / In Jesus’ name, amen.”
“I Can’t Go Outside” is another vulnerable moment where the lingering trauma of heartbreak feels inescapable, especially when reminders of his ex pop up, not just mentally but physically, as they both still live in the same city and occupy shared spaces.
Speaking on the meaning behind Hydraulic, Levi explains, “Love, like hydraulics, is a system that lifts, dips, and demands care and maintenance. It reflects the ups and downs in life. Love can also be seen as a finely tuned system of emotions, like a hydraulic car. It soars in moments of joy and dips in the lows, but it takes constant effort to maintain.”
He continues, “Similar to a mechanic, I continue to keep myself functional even when the system – my heart/mind – breaks down so that I can always keep moving.”
Hydraulicarrives five years after Levi released his debut EP,Disc One, in June 2020. He followed up in 2022 with the sequel,Disc Two, which included his Normani-assisted single “Don’t They (Remix).”
Stream Josh Levi’s new album Hydraulic below.