Yuna and Tyler the Creator have released a new track called, “Castaway” which is soulful and deep. The intro is set up with an instrumental and hum before Yuna’s lyrics glide through with a harmonizing beat that flows effortlessly. One feels as though they are gliding along water, while her voice harmonizes in the background against a gentle beat. Tyler the Creator comes in about halfway through the song dropping a sick verse before Yuna reappears and blends in effortlessly as he fades out. Her lyrics, “Honestly, you don’t see the best in me. Feels like you’re mocking me. Now I got lost so far away… a castaway.”
Her new album Rouge is out July 12 via Verve Forcast. She will be embarking on a U.S. tour in support of the new album. Rouge is the follow-up to Yuna’s 2016 record Chapters, which featured contributions from Usher, Jhené Aiko, and DJ Premier. Tyler, the Creator kicks off an extensive tour behind the album next month.
IGOR, Tyler, the Creator’s sixth full-length album, is described as his most refined, focused work to date. The production utilizes many of the same tools we have seen in past projects. The rough, vintage aesthetic on all of the beats are familiar, but on IGOR, it feels more polished and intentional.
Yuna splits her time between Malaysia and Los Angeles, where she recorded Rouge. She says, “I’m a Muslim singer-songwriter, but I never saw myself as that.” She describes Rouge, “the whole album is about how I am with myself: I’m comfortable with my relationship, with my focus on my career. It’s the color of becoming this woman I am.”
Yuna began writing songs and teaching herself to play guitar at age 14. Her initial exposure came through the viral success of her music uploaded to Myspace, which received over one million plays. She collaborated with Usher on her breakout single, “Crush”, which peaked at number 3 on the US Billboard Adult R&B chart. In May 2017, Yuna became the first Malaysian singer to be nominated for a BET Award and received a nomination for the BET Centric Award for “Crush”, her duet single with Usher.