Dvsn’s third record, “A Muse In Her Feelings,” catapults them as an early contender for
The Toronto duo, composed of R&B singer Daniel Daley and fellow producer Ninteen85, released their first single in 2015. The group subsequently signed to Drake’s record label, OVOSound, in 2016, and released their first album that year. Here we are, almost four years and three albums later, and the R&B group is still criminally underrated.The group seems to be making little impact because of the lack of promotion on their first two projects from their record label, meaning they were only known by their core fanbase.
Hopefully with “A Muse In Her Feelings,” this group will finally have their time to shine. The diverse sounds of all four of their singles were great lead-ins to what the overall sound of the album was going to be. The songs “Miss Me,” “No Cryin” (featuring Future,) “In Between” (Featuring Snoh Algera) and “A Muse” gave a great preview into the subject matter and style of songs we were to expect on the album. My favorite of these singles was “In Between” with Snoh, due to the updated beat from the original single version and its Usher sample.
The album also features a lot of R&B acts, such as Summer Walker, Partynextdoor, Ty Dolla $ign, Jessie Reyez and Snoh Algera. Soulful, melodic sounds on the album, such as the opening track “No Good,” set the album off right and give a clear image of the story the album is about to tell.
“Courtside” featuring Jesse Reyez reignited my fire in the album after it began to slip with “Friends” and “Dangerous City.” The way the two are going back and forth and singing right underneath each other held my attention for the entire track.
Other standout songs include “Courtside,” “Keep It Going,” “Flawless Do It Well” and “Again.”
“Keep it Going” is an upbeat dance song with similar musical styling to the Baltimore/DMV area. The relatable lyrics speak of a man who’s having relationship problems due to him being busy. He just wants to vibe with his girl for the night and keep the vibe going. This is a standout track because Dvsn is usually more on the melodic side of R&B, so for them to make a dance record is completely surprising.
“Flawless Do It Well” features the R&B superstar Summer Walker. The song speaks of a male being in the strip club and wanting to know if the stripper had somebody that she is talking to before giving her all of his money. Walker, in response, tells him to mind his business and focus on giving her money. The subject matter is on par for Walker, who has a past in strip clubs, reminiscent of her song “Just Might.” The production on this is amazing. It’s solid gold and pleasing to hear how Ninteen85 produced this beat. Walker and Daley both have melodic tones that complemented each other well. Hearing them sing together was very pleasing to the ear.
“Again” is a flawless album closer. The production, vocals and harmonies of Dvsn and R&B newcomer Shantel May meshed well. The song was a very soulful way to end the overall amazing album.
This album was great, but not perfect. “Friends” with Partynextdoor and “Dangerous City” with Ty Dolla $ign & Buju Banton didn’t make as much of an impact as the others. Hopefully, however, this will be the album that takes them to the next level of R&B mass superstardom.
