Sudanese-American artist (and Sex Education actor) Dua Saleh has announced their first full-length album, I Should Call Them, following a string of singles and EPs that date back to 2018 and arriving October 11 via Ghostly International (pre-order). The album features appearances by serpentwithfeet (on recent single “Unruly”), Gallant, Sid Sriram, and Ambré, and the announcement is accompanied by new single “Want.” Compared to the more ethereal “Unruly,” “Want” is an R&B anthem that feels a lot more like a Lead Single. It’s “about toxic on-again, off-again situationships,” Dua says. “It’s an anthem for those relationships that might not happen at the right time but feel so right that you go against your intuition. It’s about discovering self-worth, but still wanting to lean into that cheeky naughtiness.”
About the album overall, Dua said on Instagram:
as i have grown as a person, i realized that im sort of guarded. sometimes it’s difficult to be vulnerable & to share parts of myself that i haven’t really wanted to confront. ive always written about my life but was often timid w/ expression (cloaking lyrics in a veil that offered obscurity).
now, im leaning into my raw emotions more than ever, allowing myself to dance to the rhythm of the universe. i was beckoned by a force of nature to do this & almost feels like a quest, an oddessy-like experience. the songs on this album are an experimental itineration – they’re sonically complex and blend genres that float freely in my mind.
at the heart of it all, it’s a collection of songs that portray the spiritual power, resilience, joy of love, & pain of heartbreak found b/n two lovers.
Dua also spoke about finding a kindred spirit in serpentwithfeet, saying, “I think our connection musically is queerness, being able to have that against-all-odds connection with somebody where we may have had to resist our identity initially when we were younger. There’s a power that queerness holds for both of us.”
“Want” comes with a video directed by Grant Spanier, and you can check that out, along with the album artwork, tracklist, and the “Unruly” stream/visualizer below.
Tracklist
1. chi girl
2. want
3. time & time again (feat. Sid Sriram)
4. bo peep
5. pussy suicide
6. unruly (feat. serpentwithfeet)
7. playing games
8. cradle
9. television (feat. Ambré)
10. coast (feat. Gallant)
11. 2excited