If like me, you long for the days of positivity and Mediafire download links, then Destiny’s new LP, Honeysuckle is for you. The latest installment in Destiny Frasqueri‘s musical catalog could be viewed as the third part of musical enlightenment; trilogy would be an apt description for the three records she has released thus far, though we’re hoping for more. Destiny launched her musical career as Wavy Spice—ironically with the song “Destiny”—in 2012. Much more introverted in scope, Wavy eventually graduated to Metallic Butterfly, her coming-of-age record as Princess Nokia. Metallic Butterfly not only signaled a sonic shift, her new afro-futurist persona was anti-anti-social as Nokia spearheaded the Smart Girl Club to help turn her message of positivity into action.
If Wavy Spice was the “Egg” stage, and Princess Nokia the “Nymph,” then Honeysuckle represents the Adult form of the artist, appropriate given her new stage name is that of her birth name. In an interview with Vice, Destiny confirmed as much, saying about her new project:
I tried to make a Metallic Butterfly part two, but it just didn’t feel representative of my life. I was speaking at Harvard and touring around the country. I had become a grown woman and a professional musician… I had surpassed all the things in my life they said I couldn’t.
Sonically, the shift sees Destiny looking backwards to ’70s-influenced funk; similar in tone and message to the “Blacksploitation” soundtracks of the day; it reflects her position of power and integrity with a sincere view of who she is as a person. And of course, maintaining a positive message. As if reading my mind as I scroll Twitter, Destiny concludes, “As a people, we have to challenge ourselves to escape the negativity. We can’t succumb to the darkness. I’m trying to push the boundaries of spreading peace and love and positive ideas.”
You can stream Destiny’s Honeysuckle below, and of course, download it via Mediafire.
We also encourage you to read our cover story on Princess Nokia here.
