R&B duo THEY. has released their fourth album LOVE.JONES via drink sum wtr.
The featureless project, which merges the last names of members Drew Love and Dante Jones, was also inspired by the 1997 cult classic Love Jones.
“I just keep movies on while we’re working and Love Jones kind of sparked something and had me thinking about our very, very early days,” says Jones.
“I think there’s this weird parallel that was kind of happening in both of our lives around that period where we’re both being immersed in completely different cultures from where we came from, like, real soulful Black culture, cities that had a really rich black history. We didn’t know each other, we’re on opposite ends of the country, but we were both kind of going through these transformative times.”
Across 10 tracks, THEY. take listeners on a nostalgic journey back to early-aughts R&B with their signature touch. Like the Larenz Tate and Nia Long-starring movie, Love Jones is a celebration of Black love in all its highs and lows.
“Rotation” is a late-night slow burner that hears Love singing, “Touchin’, caressin / While I’m stripping you naked / Tie both of your hands up / Love watching you take it / Applying the pressure / Oh, you got me so anxious.”
Meanwhile, the acoustic-driven “Can’t Let Go” underscores the complexity of grappling with turmoil in a relationship and the difficulty in moving on from it: “I can’t forgive and just forget, no, not this time / Girl, your words, they cut so deep inside my mind / But I can’t just let go.”
LOVE.JONES was preceded by the singles “Diamonds and Pearls,” “Straight Up” and “Choosin.” It follows their 2023 album, Nü Moon, which featured collaborations with Yung Bleu, Fana Hues, Kacey Musgraves, Bino Rideaux, ADÉ, and blackbear.
“Nü Moon is meant to represent a new era for THEY. We look at every album as an opportunity for us to reinvent ourselves and refine our sound,” THEY. said. “We covered a lot of new ground sonically on this album while still maintaining the darker R&B sound our fans have come to love over the years. Being independent for the first time in our careers has put the power back in our hands.”
Before Nü Moon, THEY. released their sophomore album, The Amanda Tape, in 2020 via Avant Garden/Island Records. The album featured appearances by Tinashe (“Play Fight“), Juicy J (“STCU”), and Wale (“Losing Focus”). It also included other popular tracks such as “Count Me In” and “All Mine.”
In 2017, THEY. dropped their debut album, Nü Religion: Hyena, via Mind of a Genius/Warner Records. It included essentials like “Dante’s Creek,” “U-RITE” and “Motley Crew.”
Aside from their work as THEY., Drew Love and Dante Jones have both kept busy working with other artists. Love co-wrote several songs on John Legend’s 2022 album LEGEND, including “Splash” featuring Jhené Aiko and Ty Dolla $ign and “Strawberry Blush.” He’s also written for a range of artists such as K. Michelle (“Ain’t You”), Tinashe (“X”), and Sevyn Streeter (“Wet Dreamz”).
As for Jones, he most recently produced FLO‘s radio single “On & On,” adding to his resumé that includes Alina Baraz‘s “More Than Enough,” Chris Brown‘s “Stuck On Stupid,” Tori Kelly’s “The Lie,” among others.
Stream THEY.’s new album LOVE.JONES below.