When some of these songs soar in their choruses, like on "Wanted", the title track, and the synthy, bubble-gummy kiss-off "How That Taste", Kehlani’s full-throated vocals and live-band sound recall '90s R&B groups like Total. On the stunning "Wanted", she sings, "As a woman/ When you are broken/ You make a choice to stay down or go in," but the chorus, one of resounding triumph, begins with the declaration, "He makes me feel wanted/ Like no one has before." Kehlani weaves an emotional, stirring thread through her songs that mostly feels joyful, even when she’s lurking on Instagram ("Jealous") or being vexed by a new flame ("Yet"). You Should Be Here’s dynamism and generosity is something to be amazed by, especially considering Kehlani is all of 19 years old. The beating heart at the center of You Should Be Here forgives some of these dips into mawkishness. And, much like Ocean, when Kehlani veers toward the maudlin, somehow the sincerity of it all redeems itself. Kehlani, along with right-hand-man producer Jahaan Sweet, shares Ocean’s auteuristic vision and plainspoken eloquence.
If there’s a contemporary comparison to be made, it’s Frank Ocean. Kehlani has little in common with other former-child-stars-turned-singers Zendaya or Tinashe (Kehlani and her band made it to the finals on "America’s Got Talent"), and she has little in common with the music of cool, casually misogynistic R&B bros, and in spite of a connection to PARTYNEXTDOOR and hailing from Oakland, neither of those facts figure much into her music, at least on an obvious level. Kehlani spends most of You Should Be Here switching between telling various dudes to get their shit together and the rest on a mission to inspire humanity. The song’s lyrics might be the biggest red herring of all. It’s a fascinating song, and only in the most superficial ways does it suggest anything about You Should Be Here’s loftier goals. The song is a sensual shuffle that channels SZA, Jhené Aiko, and Kelela, from spacey, hesitant vocals, to a slowed-and-pitched-down rap (from the typically nimble Chance the Rapper), to the lyrics-it’s a straightforward ode to lust, all about desire and longing and waiting for the moment where wanting and having your partner collide. Or maybe someone I gave my heart to that didn’t know what to do with it.As red herrings go, first single "The Way" off Kehlani’s first official album, You Should Be Here, is a doozy. To family members that didn’t make it or friends I lost along the way. So to anybody who isn’t here to see how far I’ve gone or how far I’ve yet to go. It’s for the world because somebody out there really needs to hear this. But I have to be strong, not for myself but for a greater purpose, because I feel like my duty is far beyond me, you know? Beyond saving my family. And I’ve seen things and I’ve felt more pain than some will in their entire lives, all before the age of even being able to buy a fucking drink at a bar. And as much as anyone can say how invincible I seem or how fearless I am or how brave I must be, I’m still human. They say God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers and what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Do you know who Kehlani is? Do you know who your granddaughter is? I know who she is and I know who she was
I know you’re the star on top of stars and everybody every day has to remind me.
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