DMLY (Daddy Mi Love You) by Swigga’ Geovanni
The new single from Brooklyn’s Swigga Geovanni “DMLY (Daddy Mi Love You)” aims high for this young performer and scores big. Auspicious demonstrations of skill are nothing new for him – this is a man with pronounced talents in a variety of areas. It’s a little over three minutes long and has both substance and a commercial slant capable of drawing in a wide audience for his music. He is establishing a national reputation, but everything about “DMLY (Daddy Mi Love You)” has the potential to hit on a global scale for Geovanni. It is impressive that, this early in his career, Geovanni already sounds like a seasoned performer with both the skill and confidence to command a wide audience. He doesn’t succumb to a single misstep during the entirety of “DMLY (Daddy Mi Love You)” and sets the bar high for future releases from Swigga Geovanni.
I’m taken by how well he mixes a number of different sounds without the song ever sounding disjointed or diffuse. There’s ample percussion woven throughout the cut, but it breaks with hip hop tradition in the way it deemphasizes the beat in favor of Geovanni’s vocal, yet it still maintains a memorable groove throughout the song’s entirety. The groove remains an important factor thanks to the heavy bass presence throughout the song; the production highlights it without ever allowing it to overwhelm the listening experience. There is a light funk influence wafting through the track, as well, thanks to the guitar work, but it is far more ornamental than a marquee attraction. The track and production mix focuses more attention on Geovanni’s vocal than anything else and the song benefits from this decision.
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The songwriting is personal without ever being obscure. I am impressed with how Geovanni ably conveys the secret corners of his heart with such unabashed courage and writes in a way that couples hard-won defiance with palpable vulnerability. This is reflected by his vocal performance as well. There are other influences rising to the fore in his singing and he gives the track a faint theatrical slant due to his willingness to switch from a more straight ahead traditional vocal into briefer sections controlled by his speaking voice alone. His voice pairs well with the musical arrangement.
“DMLY (Daddy Mi Love You)” doesn’t waste listener’s time. The track runs three minutes sixteen seconds and listeners will be hard pressed to credibly identify any fat or extraneous material weighing down the performance. Swigga Geovanni performs like a man who knew exactly what he wanted from this performance when he entered the studio to cut the track and there’s no discernible hesitation in the final product. Once again, he sounds like he’s been doing this for decades rather than a few years – whatever talents he harbors in other areas, I have the feeling music has called to him the entire time and it is gratifying to hear Geovanni has heeded, at long last, and developing his art. It is only going to get better from here.
Zachary Rush