Libianca blessed us with an emotionally potent record titled “People” before 2022 came to a close and it continues to keep me locked in its therapeutic trance.

“I’ve been drinking more alcohol for the past 5 days, did you check on me?”

Libianca ponders on the slow moving, afrobeats conversation starter. Humans dependence on a vice isn’t new but with so many platforms to communicate sometimes it’s still a challenge to let people see when you’re hurting. Libianca’s songwriting and soothing vocals commanded me to listen and genuinely check in with myself the first time I heard a snippet of this song on TikTok and since the full track dropped, it hasn’t left my mind.

When an artist can share something this raw and somehow still make you want to dance, not only do they have a hit but they’ve fully tapped into the magic in music. Songs like this can heal and I hope whoever listens take a second to process how they feel when they hear “People”. Are the tequila shots celebratory or a means to getting through the night?