‘BLACK STAR’ blends Ghanaian roots with club energy, features top collaborators, and debuts the Ghana shot ‘Fineshyt’ video.
‘BLACK STAR’ arrives via Interscope Records and captures Amaarae’s intention with clarity. Known for breaking the mold with alternative, pop, R&B, and Afrobeats, she extends that synthesis into her boldest mix of global sonics yet. The album sends up Ghanaian roots as a rallying cry for youth culture worldwide, and its diaspora hopping sound becomes a futuristic statement of cultural pride across ghettotech, house, techno, baile funk, and African dance genres. Throughout, signature softness and hypnotic vocals thread the experience, and contributions from PinkPantheress, Naomi Campbell, Bree Runway, Starkillers, and Charlie Wilson add dimension.
The concept moves with purpose. ‘BLACK STAR’ recontextualizes Ghanaian and African music with pop and club sounds across time and space, connecting them with the roots of modern day dance music, house and techno. An official video for ‘Fineshyt’ lands in parallel. Shot in Ghana, the visual trails a magnetic young woman moving through club scenes and city streets with sensual, self assured quiet confidence.
Amaarae shares about ‘Fineshyt’, “1998 had Blue by French Duo Eiffel 65, 1999 had Believe by Cher & at the turn of a new millennium Modjo gave us Lady. Now, we’re at the mark of a quarter century, and Fineshyt is my contribution to a sound and feeling that not only took over clubs but minds, bodies and souls alike. Music is such a beautiful and special medium and being an artist has been God’s greatest gift to me. I remember being a little girl in Ghana hearing Believe by Cher and immediately being entranced. The hard tuned vocals, the glittery dance beat, and that hook! Do you believe in life after love! What a sentiment. A true manifesto of life. My favourite thing to do as an artist is take an inspired concept and flip it on its head. In this case, Fineshyt is Believe’s bad ass play cousin or maybe its evil twin sister!”
The dedication underscores the mission. ‘BLACK STAR’ is for the alternative youth of Ghana who are finding their footing each and every day, and for Black baddies around the world. Recent releases build the world around the album. In July, the sleek ‘Girlie-Pop’ arrived with a video directed by Omar Jones. Visually, ‘Girlie Pop’ is a bold and sensual glimpse into beat driven ecstasy when two souls collide and the music provides the necessary alchemy, in and out of the club. In June, ‘S.M.O’ accompanied the album announcement, exploring sexual liberation and empowerment through highlife, kpanlogo, and zouk music. On ‘B2B’, DJ language becomes a playful turn about “love that is taken but given back at the same time,” she explains. With lilting melodies and cool girl energy, ‘Fineshyt’ highlights “the confidence of being feminine and feeling beautiful.”
