Kemba Is His Own Role Model On "Peter Pan"
On Friday, Kemba dropped his major label debut, Gilda, through Republic Records. The album is often mellow and reflective - as it largely centred on the loss of his mother in 2017 - but the mood can shift drastically from song to song. The intro track is called "Work In Progress", which captures the project's major theme of growth and self-assurance being volatile and unpredictable. Certain songs capture the stumbling toward stable ground, but "Peter Pan" boasts the confidence of someone who has their feet firmly planted, even if it may be for just a moment.
From the moment it starts, "Peter Pan" makes clear that it is a high energy track. The backbone of the beat is a simple piano loop, but the percussion on here is phenomenal. The drums are tailored to perfectly punctuate Kemba's meandering and charismatic flows, as if they're running beside him trying to match his vitality. At several points, the drums are stripped away, catching their breath before coming crashing back in. "Peter Pan" describes the moment when realizing that whoever you thought would serve as the paradigm upon which to model your own image cannot fulfill that role. Even if you don't precisely who you're supposed to be, you alone have all the resources to figure it out along the way.
Quotable Lyrics
Now all I see is these old n****s acting like Peter Pan
I told myself how to be a man
Made mistakes, now I see the plan
I told myself how to reinvent