Colombian singer/songwriter and clothing brand Bodied by Uchis CEO Kali Uchis has started off 2024 with a new album, ORQUIDEAS, along with announcing her pregnancy with fellow artist Don Toliver.
The singer is best known for her collaborations with Tyler, The Creator like See you again (Flowerboy,’17) or, After the Storm (Isolation, ‘18). With her solo song Telepatia taking over Tiktok in 2020, Uchis has established herself as a hit artist in both Latin and domestic charts. Last year the singer dropped her album Red Moon In Venus , with the hit “Moonlight”. Red Moon In Venus was a truly beautiful addition to Uchis’s discography. Looking back it teased the “enchanting” and “milk bath” aesthetic used in Orquideas.
Songs like “Love Between” and “Hasta Cuando” were ultimately my top picks from both the artist and the album. Signifying women empowerment and the sincere adornment of two lovers. Musicality wise, the album offers hypnotic and rich beats with enticing vocals, almost as if you were listening to a siren pull you in. January 14th, Uchis dropped her newest album Orquideas, the 14- song album includes the Latin hits “Munekita” and “Te Mata”.
The Latin album includes four songs with features from artists Peso Pluma, JT of City Girls, El Alfa, Karol G, and Rauw Alejandro. With both title tracks of the album being features, “Labios Morodidos” and “Igual que un angel”. Uchis explores a mixture of house music, R&B, and club music across the album. All the while expressing her never ending love for long term boyfriend Don Toliver and brushing off the haters.
Uchis has only released one music video for the album being “Te mata”. However, the music itself does a great job of visualizing the story within the lyrics. Listeners are encouraged to note that while Uchis has titled this a Latin album, the lyrics themselves are not exclusively in spanish. Many songs teeter between English and Spanish lyrics interchangeably.
The title track “Igual que un Angel,” featuring rising star Peso Pluma, perfectly captures the aura of the album. Undoubted love that brings never-ending happiness. This also shows a new side of Pluma seeing as how his usual projects have been more on the “trap” side of the latin R&B world.
The drastic change in Uchis’s albums is obvious in this new edition. From her struggles to join the industry in early projects like Por Vida and Isolation, to her god-complex in Sin Miedo(del Amor y Otros Demonios), to her now humbled loving persona. Uchis’s new album represents not only her love for her partner but the love she’s allowed for herself. This album is perfect for emotional nights, happy drives, and karaoke with friends and loved ones.
My personal favorites include “Young Rich & In Love,” “Munekita” and “Diosa”. The three songs signify the best part of long-term relationships, beyond the honeymoon phase, beyond the constant arguing…when two people genuinely love each other and contribute to each other’s happiness. To me while listening to these songs, I feel empowered and instantly in a better mood.