Vinyl LP, Compact Disc (CD)
In 2020, Cherise released the EP Paradise, where she sang alongside orchestral arrangements and a 15-part choir that appeared on the final song, “Felicity.” Post-Paradise, she’s appeared in the 2022 historical drama Downton Abbey: A New Era, and on its companion soundtrack, covering Ethel Waters’s “Am I Blue?” and the Irving Caesar-penned show tune “Crazy Rhythm.” In the same year, she supported British soul musician Michael Kiwanuka and English jazz-pop veteran Jamie Cullum on their respective tours. On her debut LP, Calling, the British vocalist and instrumentalist has created a stunning body of work. On Calling, Cherise follows the road paved by Corrine Bailey Rae and Lianne La Havas with sentimental songs that offer a contemporary take on R&B, soul, and jazz. The album celebrates Cherise’s identity as a second-generation Jamaican Brit, and the songs here celebrate her personal growth and history.
“Tastes like my grandma’s food, soul is well fed/ Swells like the carnival filling up the street,” Cherise sings on the title song. On Calling, Cherise brings listeners to her world with graceful production and harmonious and mellow vocals. Halfway through the acoustic ballad “Not A Love Song,” rapturous neo-soul instrumentation enters, and the euphonious “2 Steppin’” has a honeyed chorus that doubles as the perfect background to a casual afternoon teatime. “Night Moves” describes her dedication to her songwriting practice: “To retreat from the static sound, I hear songs all the time,” she recites in spoken word at the song’s end. Her strong voice floats above the downbeat production of the lead single “Secrets.” Quirky humor and playful adlibs make space on the warmth of “Summer Love,” where she admits “It’s nice to be silly for once.” The album’s titular track showcases the sort of future funk that became popular at the beginning of this decade, highlighting Cherise’s light grooves and precision across sounds. “Don’t know where I’m headed, but I know where I am from,” she sings, firmly rooted in her identity.
Cherise’s full-bodied songs on Calling are a tribute to her history while affirming her own steps forward. The self-professed “island girl with a city life” comes home to herself.
