Stop what you’re doing and go download the new Bruno Mars album, 24K Magic, right now. Go on! I’ll wait…
If you’re skeptical, check out my husband’s review at SoulInStereo.com. Mr. Bowser goes so far as to say that Bruno, a pop singer, might be the one to bring back R&B. “It shouldn’t be much of a surprise when you think about it. Bruno Mars’ meteoric rise has been fueled by ’80s R&B and funk purified in the waters of Lake Minnetonka,” Hubs says. “On 24K Magic, Bruno’s third album, he takes his ’80s infatuation even further, crafting an album that branches out from his usual ’80s pop stylings and cabbage patches right into early ’90s New Jack Swing. Time traveling has never been this hype before.”
One of my favorite tracks is “Perm” a infectious up-tempo tune that uses a goofy extended hair metaphor that works perfectly: “Throw some perm on your attitude/Girl, you gotta relax.”
Y’all, America needs this album right now. For real. Most of us have been so stressed lately fighting for the causes we believe in and striving to build a better life for ourselves and the ones we love that we’ve been tightly coiled indeed. And we should be. We should be about the work of revolution — both personal and political. But it’s OK to take a break. At least for a little while.
At just 9 tracks, 24K Magic is only about 30 minutes long. So this weekend give yourself some time off to just dance.
Dance when you’re broken open.
Dance in the middle of the fighting.
Dance when you’re perfectly free.
— Rumi