Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist. For our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Kali Uchis turns up the heat with SZA’s Spanish-language debut.
Steamy and dreamy: two words that have long applied to SZA’s discography, and that certainly apply to her latest collaboration with Grammy-winning Latin artist Kali Uchis. “Fue Mejor” is sad and sultry, grooving over a throbbing beat that wouldn’t sound out of place in any of SZA’s albums. The airy, whistle-toned background vocals are offset by the sound of a revving engine, grounding the fantastical atmosphere.
Notably, SZA sings in Spanish alongside Kali Uchis while the pair unpacks an unhealthy relationship neither party seems to want to leave. On SZA’s verse (translated), she laments: “It’s hard to let you go when you do it like that/ It makes you feel good when you treat me so bad.”
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The original “fue mejor,” which featured PartyNextDoor, is from Kali Uchis’ 2020 sophomore album Sin Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞, and she seems to be thrilled by the result of this remix. “This is Latin R&B, this is SZA singing in Spanish for the very first time, this is spooky season, this IS the moment,” Uchis said in a statement. Happy October 1st, everyone — it seems like steamy, dreamy, and spooky (scream-y?) is actually the best way to summarize the track.
— Mary Siroky
Contributing Editor
