Childish Gambino just dropped two new 'Summer Pack' songs
After putting himself in the hip-hop spotlight earlier this summer with the highly politically charged and easter-egg-packed music video for 'This Is America', Childish Gambino (the musical alter ego of Donald Glover) is taking his foot off the gas pedal to soak up some summer vibes.
On July 11, Childish Gambino unveiled two new tracks titled 'Summertime Magic' and 'Feels Like Summer'. As the evocative titles suggest, the songs are definitive groovy summer bops that were released on streaming services under the title 'Summer Pack'. Pitchfork confirms that the two tracks will also be on his upcoming fourth studio album, his first under new label Wolf+Rothstein/RCA.
It's a curious turn for Glover as the two songs are complete opposite of the provocative 'This Is America'. Languid and breezy, the summer pack showcases a slowish tempo, steel drums, heavily synthesized vocals, shrill yelps, soft synths and barely-there guitar strums.
The lyrics are also the complete antitheses of the political anthem 'This Is America'. With generic pop-friendly chants like “You feel like summertime/You took this heart of mine/You’ll be my valentine in the summer” and endlessly repetitive hooks, it's hard to imagine how the songs would fit into the same album that holds 'This Is America' (assuming the single finds its way into the album).
But there's no denying that the two tracks have an infectiously catchy sound, a perfect gift for the summer from Glover to his ever-increasing fan base. In a sense, the two tracks go on to show that modern renaissance man Donald Glover is still an artist who will manage to surprise you no matter how much you learn to expect the unexpected.
Curiously enough, both songs are co-written and co-produced by Childish Gambino and Ludwig Goransson, the same team behind 'This Is America.'