Kokayi – DJ Play

DOWNLOAD: Kokayi – DJ Play

The ever flavorful, genre-swapping artist/producer/singer/songwriter Kokayi might still be riding high on the wave of success brought on by his new album, Robots & Dinosaurs, but he’s focused on keeping the fire hot, this time around dropping a brand new non-album single. The new song, “DJ Play,” is part of Illvibe’s highly anticipated album, All Together Now, a comprehensive project over two years in the making that also features Bahamadia, Invincible, Conya Doss, and Hezekiah, among many others. For Kokayi, his involvement in the project didn’t take much persuasion. “The jawn cranked,” explains the D.C. representer, “and I have mad respect and appreciation for the Illvibe cats so it was a no-brainer on the collaboration.”

With a rather metallic feel, “DJ Play,” which is produced by DJ Lil’ Dave of Illvibe, is ready for the club straight from the start; a dance-ready beat complete with reggae adopted rim-shots, closely followed by various club tones and an infectious, wobbling synth line provide the backdrop for Kokayi’s vocals. And perfectly so, given Kokayi’s fitting lyrics and signature flow, “I’m like ease…that’s not too fast, now I’m sitting here feeling dumb/ I don’t know where that come from/ I’m just a simple man with a simple tongue/ I got a Simple Plan, my boy like you simple, son/ but I’m simply falling over you, like a simpleton.” As you might have guessed, the lyrical inspiration for this track was drawn from those after-hour weekend nights, and has Kokayi telling the story of “a hapless romantic trying to win the heart of, or rather trying to kick some unattached solid game to someone he finds attractive, while stumbling over his romantic side the entire way.”

Fans can also look for a music video to accompany the single in the coming weeks.