Bless Bee distils the thrill of romantic admiration and physical attraction into infectious Pop and R&B delight

Bless Bee has always favoured simplicity in her music, allowing melody and feeling to do much of the work.

On “Spark,” she applies that approach to romantic attraction, building the record around the excitement of being drawn to someone and wanting them to know it. Sometimes, saying less can make you feel more, and “Spark” largely works from that premise.

Built around the singer’s desire to communicate the extent of her admiration and attraction to her love interest, the song showcases the understanding of its creator, Blessing Jayeola, that sometimes, saying less can make you feel more.

Over smooth R&B guitars and a bouncy rhythmic Pop arrangement, the singer distils the uncomplicated thrill of physical attraction into an infectious record that brings together the best of both worlds.

The light and easygoing backdrop keeps Bless Bee's vocals at the centre of the record. Her soft delivery sits comfortably over the arrangement, while simple and relatable lyrics communicate her desires and intentions. While her songwriting on this record could have benefited from greater depth, if she had offered a more distinct POV on attraction rather than relying on broadly relatable expressions, her ability to translate personal experiences into emotionally resonant music contributes strongly to the record’s appeal.

It is on the production side that her insistence on simplicity leaves a little more to be desired. Lush guitar licks usher listeners into the song’s sonic atmosphere. The production is minimalist: bouncy kicks and skittering claps layered underneath a simple chord progression laced with R&B guitars.

This minimalist approach allows Bless Bee’s vocals to remain central to the song without competing with an overcrowded arrangement. However, the production fails to evolve as the song progresses, remaining largely static until the closing seconds, when a thrilling guitar solo and delightful vocal runs attempt to elevate the quality of the composition.

Simplicity is a common theme in her music. A quick trip across her budding discography reveals records such as “Touch,” “Wrong,” and “Hurry,” which shine with the strength of their effective arrangements. This approach enables her to deliver music that is relatable and emotionally rich. It comes at a cost, however, as her production choices often tend towards the predictable and monotonous.

Bless Bee is clearly talented. She is a gifted singer with an ability to create music associated with a feeling. However, this writer would love to see her make braver production choices. While delivering easily digestible music that does not demand too much from the listener is a hallmark of a talented artist, the ability to step outside one’s comfort zone and deliver competently is what distinguishes talented artists from great ones.

Does Bless Bee want to remain talented, or does she want to be great? I guess time will tell.

By Philemon Jacob