Stuck on My Mind by ROJAZ
Produced: AfterParty
The first thing you notice about ROJAZ is her voice. There’s a breathy cushion to it; it has a lilt and tone that gently takes your hand and guides you through the dead-end relationship outlined on her latest single, Stuck on My Mind. Her voice is not wispy like Amber Navran but there’s an airy quality that gives the impression two people are singing against each other, which mirrors the central conflict of the lyrics. Stuck on My Mind is an intensely relatable song about a relationship going nowhere. There’s a physical intimacy where the lovers connect between the sheets but little more than that. Pitch tempered keys, watery rim shots, the subdued emphasis of a piano solo and the repetitive hook all contribute to the idea that this cycle of unclarity has tainted the potential of this relationship. The speaker has their lover stuck on their mind with no relief in sight; they can only sing their blues.
There are moments on the track where the listener is left a bit wanting. In the third act of the song it feels as if there’s a missed opportunity to show off ROJAZ’s range and on occasion the production drowns out the lyrics but at such a young age Stuck on My Mind shows her promise as an artist. ROJAZ is languid without being lazy; she is soulful without being derivative and she makes sure that her voice will be stuck on your mind for many years to come.