Janelle Monáe has returned with ‘Float’, a new single that features horns from Fela Kuti’s youngest son, Seun Kuti and his band, Egypt 80.
Produced by Nana Kwabena, Nate “Rocket” Wonder and Sensei Bueno, the track is the musician’s first new music proper since 2018 and draws inspiration from, according to a press statement, “Muhammed Ali talking shit in Zaire, 1974, Jane’s evolution, Mary Poppins’ umbrella, Aladdin’s magic carpet, Ja Morant’s flotation to the rim while dunking on his ops, Sara Elise’s ropes, excerpts from Paramahmsa Nithyananda’s talks on levitation, Raul’s toast on Dec 1, and Bruce Lee’s mighty philosophy on being ‘shapeless, formless,’ and becoming one with your surroundings, to be like water.”
The song follows four one-off track releases since 2018, including ‘Turntables’ from the Amazon Original movie All In: The Fight For Democracy, 2021’s ‘Stronger’ on Netflix’s We The People, ‘That’s Enough’ from the remake of Disney’s Lady And The Tramp, and ‘Say Her Name (Hell You Talmbout)’ – a protest against police brutality.