Powerfully inspiring, uplifting, soulfully honest and hopeful. That’s how very talented singer and songwriter, Emeli Sandé’s latest album, Real Life, can best be described. A very gut-wrenching and truly authentic to her life album that maybe arguably her best work to date.
The album finds Sandé giving hope and inspiration to the forgotten ones in humanity. Those who are marginalised, going through difficult times and fighting like a phoenix to rise through the ashes to emerge out on top, stronger than ever before.
Starting with the very powerful, piercing and profoundly empowering Troy Miller-produced, Human, as the opening track. Sandé’s very powerfully soulful vocal display along with her powerfully deep and soulfully touching lyrics really setting the tone for how strong and empowering of an album it truly is. Human is such a masterpiece of the emotions we almost all go through and can relate to. That it will move most to tears and shows the undeniable chemistry between Sandé and Miller, who produced the whole album.
That perfectly transitioning into the soulfully raw and beautiful, Love to Help. Which is such a beautiful, yet powerful record about all the pain we as humans go through in times of difficulty in life and how we don’t have to go through it alone. There’s always others willing to help.
Which is why it’s perfect that, You’re Not Alone, is the very next record. A powerfully uplifting and piano driven song that finds Sandé delivering powerfully uplifting and hopeful lyrics about having hope in a time when many of us around the world truly need it. No matter what you are going through in life, you are not alone. As she displays with her truly soaring and emotionally powerful vocal performance with the backing choir. While, Shine, is a very uplifting and inspiring Gospel-like ballad. That’s such a very vibrant and amazing feel-good record that makes you feel like you’re at church.
By far one of the best records on the album though that also kicked off the promotion is, Sparrow. A very emotionally soulful and powerful ballad that tackles low self-esteem and shaken identity. It finds Sandé backed by an orchestra showcasing her powerfully emotionally soulful anthemic vocals and lyrics, which she has become widely known for. The U.K. and really music’s go-to ballader for powerfully emotional strong anthem-type ballads. The very next record, Honest. A very beautifully touching and honestly raw song. Where you can feel and hear all the raw, honest and emotionally beautiful lyrics, it could very well move you to tears.
What makes the album so great too is that Sandé isn’t afraid to explore other sounds. As evident from songs like the very spiritually awake, Survivor, or the even more dance and disco-type vibes on the very catchy, Extraordinary Being. The latter showing how extraordinarily talented the singer is for the fact she’s still able to make such an amazing song with her usual positive and inspiring lyrics. Even despite it being a more dance and disco-type record rather than the strong anthem-type ballads we are used to.
The album just continues to get even better as it draws down to the last two to three records too. Whether it be the very beautiful and simply, yet soulfully amazing, Same Old Feeling or the very soulfully encouraging and beautifully uplifting title track. Even the very beautiful and amazingly raw and soulful, Free as a Bird, not only easily the best song on the album and such a perfect record to close out such an amazing album. But one of the best songs you will ever hear period with all the emotion, soul and vocal display, as well as lyrics put into that record. So beautiful it will move most people to tears when listening to it. Especially having Sandé put forth by far one of the best vocal displays of her career too. Such an encouraging and uplifting album many of us need in the times we live in today. Albums like this truly setting artists like Sandé among the best of their generation.