It’s the return of Pen Griffey as Bryson Tiller pops up from the shadows to share a new track titled “Let Me Explain.” And even though it’s been a minute since we last heard from him, the singer-songwriter sounds like he hasn’t lost one iota of the alchemy that helped make his TRAP SOUL sounds a big success when he took over the scene last year.
“Let Me Explain” is Tiller in familiar territory as he tries to explain his way out having the lady in his life walk away from him. To be quite, the 23-year-old singer sounds like every man his age and possibly older in that we may not always be forthcoming with our feelings until we’re on the brink of losing the woman we love. Here, Tiller lays it all on the line, abandoning any machismo while copping to truly needing to have that special her in his life at all points and times and being willing to make the necessary adjustments to be a better version of himself.
“No lie girl when I tell you, you a blessing
Girl just let me make corrections, yeah
Damn, I’ve been stressing yeah
I’ve been really tripping babe
I learned my lesson, yeah
I still need you to listen, oh babe”
He’s got these shades to his music that bring to mind a young Ginuwine when he was at his peak collaborating with Timbaland. The best way to characterize his work is to reiterate what Joel said a while back: Tiller knows how to sing to woman instead of singing at them as objects. Using the approach, a stronger connection is made between him and the listener, regardless of sex because we’re peering into a private conversation almost. And as we’re looking, it’s easy to see ourselves being in the same position at one point or another. That realism is what will help Tiller stick around for much more time to come as one of R&B’s best out right now.
