King avriel
"I just need Beyoncé to let me write her next album and then the world would be saved."
What Avriel Epps was talking about in a recent interview was a platform, not a voice, for she very much has the latter.
On the deep-thinking neo-soulstress's slinky and progressive debut album, Epps (a.k.a. King avriel) expresses herself in an unbroken spirit stream, occasionally rapping or sublimely Auto-Tuned, always with an eloquence, candour and intelligence that demands attention.
On the shimmering 180, the former model recounts a pill-popping past of fast-lane teenage living, a rape and subsequent abortion.
She's comparable stylistically to Frank Ocean or FKA Twigs, but her voice is her own and her rule is imminent. Long live King avriel. Bow down, Beyoncé.
Streaming here.
Brad Wheeler