Ravyn Lenae maps her own path on third album Blue Island

Ravyn Lenae has released her third album, Blue Island, a project that examines the expectations placed on Black women in pop music while widening her sonic range and self-awareness.

The album draws on a personal journey over the past year and moves through synth-pop, beachy soft rock and 1990s-tinged R&B. Lenae anchors the varied material in the sounds of the 1980s.

1980s New Wave and vintage R&B

Gated reverb and a New Wave-influenced chorus open the album on Handle. Wish You Well is a power-pop ballad with elements associated with Cyndi Lauper and Wilson Phillips.

Other tracks reach for vintage R&B. Babygirl features a guest verse from Doechii, and Never Let Me Go uses a cinéma vérité approach. Reputation features Dominic Fike. Find It One Day is a New Jack Swing slow-burner.

Featured artists and track list

Tracks referenced on Blue Island include:

• Handle
• Wish You Well
• Babygirl featuring Doechii
• Never Let Me Go
• Reputation featuring Dominic Fike
• Sew Me Back Together
• Familiar Dreams
• Find It One Day
• Potential
• Let Us In

Modern production thread

A hyperpop-adjacent thread runs alongside the 1980s influence. It appears in the final act of Potential as a propulsive, distorted, syncopated beat, and returns fully on the closing track Let Us In.

The album was made in a more playful mode of creativity, and some songs carry multiple sonic threads across their runtime.