50 Shades of Zhavia: “Candlelight”
This girl is a bag of surprises.
Zhavia, the singer who rose to fame in the U.S thanks to her participation in the FOX talent show “The Four” early this year, released only a few days ago her debut single titled “Candlelight”. The song was released via Columbia Records, a record label that announced the signing of Zhavia in May. And why do I say this song is a surprise? Because I didn’t expect a sound like this having watched Zhavia’s most popular performances from “The Four”, which were her renditions of Khalid’s “Location” and French Montana’s “Unforgettable”. I blindly believed Zhavia was going to take the R&B or urban routes for her career; however, her debut single “Candlelight” is a pop ballad, and this is the surprise. And it isn’t any kind of pop ballad; “Candlelight” is a ballad with a high level of sensitivity.
“I don't wanna run from a bullet / Gotta leave my candlelight burning / If it goes out, I will lose it / Gotta let my candlelight burn, burn, burn”, sings Zhavia in the chorus. “Candlelight” is a medium through which Zhavia speaks of how sometimes she feels lost in this world, how she feels a lot of responsibility for this opportunity to be a household name destiny has given her and how she just can’t let this train pass, and she speaks of heartbreak too. But in true honesty, one can interpret the lyrics of “Candlelight” in many different ways. But what isn’t object of debate is the that the song is filled with much emotion, that it is a perfect song where Zhavia is able to show off all the angles of her voice, and that undoubtedly it will cause you to have goosebumps, especially in the climax part.
Although the song can be categorized as a pop ballad, it should be mentioned that there is a Caribbean/Jamaican touch that sometimes Zhavia injects to her singing (veryvery signa of her) and there’s also moments when you can hear a bit of soul, reminiscing to Amy Winehouse in style, in Zhavia’s delivery.
I got excited when listening to this song for the first time, I can’t wait to see Zhavia perform it on a late nkfht show, and after hearing it for like 100 times since last Friday, I have the profound hope that this could a great hit in America.
I’m so intrigued to see how Zhavia’s career will unfold. One could have prejudged how her sound was going to be and what career route she was going to take, taking in consideration her time on “The Four”, but here came Zhavia with “Candlelight” and mades us think there could be 50 shades to her or maybe more. I can’t wait to discover the rest!
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Photo credit: Roch Armando