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Ravyn Lenae, who in 2022 took us back to 2002 with the soulful Hypnos, now transports us to a near-future in her follow-up record Bird’s Eye, a sonic potpourri that ushers in the tendencies of the decade ahead. The new album, produced by DJ Dahi, frees itself from genre labels and allows Lenae to liberally explore musical elements, cherry-picking those that most inspire her—not merely influences, but full departures.

The result is a work of art filled to the brim with pleasant surprises for both listeners and fellow musicians, further cementing a trend this decade, likely to continue into the next, of corner-to-corner musical experimentation by young artists. Where Lenae debuted within the confines of a genre, pleasing R&B purists, she now takes risks, potentially losing some of her audience for the richer reward of artistic and personal growth.

Bird’s Eye, therefore, is not what fans expected and truly feels like a wager of a project. “Genius” offers the first salvo as its bonbon indie-pop choruses flourish above a gyrating bassline and sharp electric guitar strums, all adding to a sense of brightness. The head-bobbing track, luxuriant in its layering, is enhanced by Lenae’s reposeful vocals, which command new frontiers and remain ever-enchanting upon repeated listens.

“Bad Idea,” with its beat-to-voice verses and refrains, blinks with R&B, hip-hop, and electronic influences in a true sonic constellation of production. Dahi understands the assignment and indulges in creating synthetic spikes, clap-clap beats, and micro beat drops that complement the lyrical sprint. “Got nothing to say but you're sorry / Make sure when you talk about me / You get to the part where you lost me” stings so good.

A brief return to genesis in “One Wish” offers us the luscious, melodic, early-millennium narrative style that made Hypnos a hit, with the added bonus of what Childish Gambino might have contributed in that era. Truly emotive and heartbreaking, the track is a lamentation of parental absenteeism, its lacerations, and their slow but mesmerizing healing processes. All departures have an origin, and here an ode is paid to it.

In “Dream Girl,” hints of jazz and samba, driven by a steely-soft acoustic guitar riff, make an elegant appearance. Dripping from the composition, these elements provide a dancefloor for the graceful and complementary vocal duality that Lenae and Ty Dolla $ign offer. Just as “Candy” is a reggae-infused love letter, “Love Me Not” is reverb-drenched, soft rock, tumultuous affection. One genre to the next, all good.

There is no pinpoint, no box, no marker—just style and the passion of a talented artist free to explore and spread her wings. Bird’s Eye is a 10,000-foot observation of broken boundaries and the landscapes that lie beyond them. It is a trend that artists like Lenae will embrace further in the years to come; she is just the one taking the first tactical gambits that others will benefit from.

“Days,” a Kacey Musgraves-esque, nostalgic, alt-country collage, closes the record, accompanied by a visualizer that shows Lenae on a reflective drive across vast, beautiful vistas. The final track stamps Lenae’s soaring venture into the unknown, to a place where risks pay off and the future of artistic freedom beckons just beyond the horizons of the present.

Listen to Bird's Eye below: