.png){kind=small}
After an eventful and energetic early 2020 that featured a COLORS guest performance for his track Cliquot Shower among other quality singles in Untitled (Hit Record) and Pull Up the Bay Area’s Caleborate was beginning to give us a glimpse into a fresh, R&B meets pop-infused sound he’s added to his arsenal.
Although we now find ourselves in the midst of a global pandemic that derailed plans for the release of another project of his own, we’re here to make sure Caleborate’s early success doesn’t go unnoticed.
Culminating all of these releases already mentioned above, the 4Willem budding star also gave us the ultimate Coronavirus gift (if there's even such a thing) in a short EP of loosies to tide us over entitled Sparks in the Studio which highlights five tracks including five features from the likes of Orlando native Chandler Broom, Donte Thomas, SHANE EAGLE, and K1D.
Among the many unique aspects to this ‘tide you over’ styled release, our favorite is the fact that a majority of it seems to be unmixed, rather just raw vocals and the production one would get if they were listening right there in the studio itself (as the project’s title suggests!). In fact, the only tracks that are presumably mixed and mastered of the bunch is mixed by Caleb himself on Swear.
Building off that, each track features an artist many of us may have never heard of before with Caleb turning the light on and waking us up to the talented artists out there that he himself has come in contact with in his own travels. This isn’t new for him either, as some of his hit tracks off his last project were produced by artists as far away as Amsterdam. Even the feature with Broom on this project stems from the beginning of their friendship back in November of 2019 after the Orlando R&B native opened up for Caleb at one of his shows.
K1D provides a light that shines bright in the form of vivid storytelling amid intricate bars, Thomas brings a lyricism and writing ability that’s rare in even the industry’s top artists, Broom brings us vocals and a reinvented R&B trap-soul sound that will surely one day rock radio waves all across the globe, and SHANE EAGLE brings a versatile flow and unique delivery that has a lane of its very own too. Although each artist is unique and different in their own respective ways, they all blend perfectly with Caleb and only build their tracks up to new heights.
Then of course there’s Caleborate himself. Debuting more of his new sound we became accustomed to on tracks like Pull Up, he blends his authentic lyrical self with the newest tool on his belt in an ever-expanding vocal range and growing tendency to sing rather than strictly rap that we've seen in the past.
No matter the lane he takes it’s clear as day that Caleb’s love for music, infectious positive aura, and musically savviness is continuously here to stay. In a competitive and sometimes seemingly oversaturated market out on the West Coast, he continues to shine through as a consistent diamond in the rough while he continues to make his own path in the industry.
If Sparks in the Studio was a glorified ‘throwaway’ of sorts, who knows what gems the official project may hold for us?
Make sure to follow Caleborate on all social media platforms @caleborate as well as us @engmtcent to keep up with his latest releases and more.