Derrick Jay Excels When He Sings Softly

I was impressed by the first songs off his new extended play, Last Time, but my joy didn't last.

People often say they're speechless when they don't know what to say. Singers often say they're speechless when a lady has taken their breath away. On 'Speechless', a song off Derrick Jay's extended play, Last Time, Derrick sings, in a meditative tone, about the mistakes he's made in life. The singing, on a Hip hop beat, is allowed to shine, the beat and singing achieving maximum effect through their simplicity.

Listening to 'By Myself', the second song off the extended play, we can establish the fact that Derrick Jay has gone for an easy listening experience. What with the soft singing and hard-ish Hip hop beats. And although this makes for a soft listening experience, it allows for something more: the listener to ask themselves hard questions. That's how insidious Derrick Jay's style is.

In ‘By Myself', Derrick Jay starts the song softly singing ‘I spend a lot of time by myself'.

‘Way too many problems in my head', he continues before he changes speed and starts singing angrily and fast.

The third track on the EP is ‘Game Of Fools'. The soft-voiced Derrick Jay sings in a deep voice on this song. This is a disappointing song: this is not the Derrick we're introduced to in ‘Speechless’.

‘She says she loves me but she be lying', Derrick sings in ‘Her’, a song where he talks about a lady who’s pretty but imperfect, a lady who's given him heartache, a lady who talks about him to her girlfriends​​. 

‘Good For Me' is an interesting song. Featuring Chino Diggz, we're treated to some rap-like singing and very soft singing, the latter being what we love and expect from Last Time.

The lyrical content of this song is heavy: I take it it's Chino Diggz who sings about a relationship that started out magically but ended tragically. He talks about walking into the fire where he could have burned his soul into ashes, being blinded by the kisses.

‘You lay your body close to me, mentally you wasn't there', Chino Diggz sings.

The introduction of Chino Diggz on this EP was a masterstroke.

‘I want you to stay', Derrick Jay sings softly at the end.

I laugh as I listen to ‘Listen'. Derrick wonders how the relationship got fucked up. On this song, Derrick gives relationship advice but I don't think he carries any message through. It's a disappointment ’cause I would have loved for him to elaborate, but I guess it suffices to hear him tell the listener to take nothing for granted, with him telling us that love never goes according to plan.

‘Closure' is the last song on the extended play. In terms of the beat, I hear the drum. Lyrics-wise, Derrick sings about not feeling the same as he used to feel when he was a kid.

He sings as if he misses the old days; he sings as if he's sad that happened, but on the other end he sings about loving how life's changed, so you have to wonder: which is which? But he asks himself of the change: is it a good thing?

‘Speechless’ and ‘By Myself’ are soft singing songs that impressed me. I wish Derrick Jay had made more songs like this on the extended play.