Be Right Back is the third extended play by British singer Jorja Smith. The record was released on 14 May 2021 by FAMM.
Self described as a "waiting room" in preparation for her sophomore album, Be Right Back features writing and production from long time collaborators Joel Compass and Ed Thomas, amongst others, as well as guest vocals from British-Nigerian rapper Shaybo. Written and recorded over a two-year period, Be Right Back sonically adopts experimental song structures and lyrically revolves around the complexity of ideal womanhood, relationships and self-awareness.
Upon its release, Be Right Back received generally positive reviews from critics who praised Smith's vocals and noted it as a worthy prelude to her follow up album. The EP was promoted with the release of three singles; "Addicted", "Gone" and "Bussdown".
Contents
Background
Smith described Be Right Back as a "waiting room" in preparation for her upcoming second studio album. Be Right Back was written and recorded over a two-year period (2019–2021), and was used by Smith as a way to give herself closure over numerous situations that happened during that two-year period.
Music and lyrics
Be Right Back is an eight-track set that takes influence from jazz, R&B and trip-hop. The album adopts unconventional song structure and was noted for its experimental production, seen by Kyann-Sian Williams of NME as "moving away from her traditional soulful and garage sounds." Robin Murray from Clash stated the album expanded on the "luxurious modern soul" of Smith's debut album with influences of British underground music described by Murray as a "London-centric Soulquarian vibe." Eric Torres of Pitchfork noted the album's musical style as being "contrasting", stating that Smith takes influence from hip-hop production, but focuses on "mellower, guitar- and piano-driven instrumentation."
The album lyrics adopt a poetic style and discuss the complexity of womanhood, relationships and self-awareness.
Be Right Back opens with "Addicted" a rock inspired song which features "wispy keyboards, a stuttering snare drum, smoky guitars" and was compared by Chris Deville of Stereogum to Radiohead. "Gone" features a 2 step production, with electro inspired drums, keyboards and Smith delivering her vocals in a "half spoken" style. Bussdown is an afroswing track that features guest vocals by British rapper Shaybo. Kyann-Sian Williams of NME compared the song to Smith's own "Be Honest" (2019). Shaybo's verse was noted as a departure from her usually aggressive rhymes, opting for a slower delivery. Lyrically the song discusses the juxtaposition between fame and happiness.
"Home" is built over an electric guitar.
"Burn" is a jazz song that features rhythmic bass', guitar and "rolling" vocals which were described by Eric Torres of Pitchfork as sounding on the "verge of tears." "Digging" is a pop rock song with "angsty 80s pop" influences according to Kadish Morris of The Guardian. Candace McDuffie of Paste magazine described the song beginning "with intriguing reverb and escalates to feel-good, cascading rhythms". McDuffie also described the lyrics as "existential" noting Smith's mention of heaven. The EP's closing song "Weekend" is an alternative R&B song with a minimalist production and operatic singing that was compared to the work of Willow Smith by Kyann-Sian Williams of NME.
Release and promotion
Be Right Back was released on 14 May 2021 to digital music and streaming platforms. Be Right Back was Smith's third extended play and first major release since Lost & Found (2018). Smith initially wanted to call the project This Is Not My Second Album, telling Apple Music that Be Right Back was a collection of songs that she had written but were not intended for her second studio album.
The EP was promoted with the release of three singles. "Addicted" was released as the first single to streaming platforms on 10 March 2021.
Acclaimed by critics, the song peaked at forty-six on the UK Singles Chart.
"Gone" was released as the EP's second single on 19 April 2021. The song failed to chart on any major platforms but peaked at number twenty-nine on the UK Independent Singles Charts. The third single "Bussdown" featuring Shaybo was released on 13 May 2021 and peaked at fifty-six on the UK Singles Chart.
Critical reception
Be Right Back received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 73, based on 7 reviews.
Robin Murray of Clash described the EP as "immaculate", commending Jorja for "opening out her sound, and finessing her approach", noting that "she's only just getting started". NME critic Kyann-Sian Williams praised Smith's experimental vocals and the live instruments, and described Be Right Back as a "perfect prelude to her next chapter". Likewise Candace McDuffie of Paste magazine felt the EP was a "promising" sign of what Smith's follow up album would offer stating "hopefully, the singer will experiment even further with more rich and upbeat tunes that will heighten the dynamism of her already-indelible voice."
Eric Torres editor of Pitchfork called Smith's vocals the "most appealing quality", noting her ability to use her voice to tap into "various emotional states." Torres summed the extended play stating "With stripped-back instrumentation and poignant emotion, the English singer's latest release is a stopgap EP that punches above its weight." Kadish Morris of The Guardian praised the extended plays rewind factor stating "Digging's angsty 80s pop rock energy and Bussdown's (featuring rapper Shaybo) subtle dancehall beat are nice enough to rewind, proving that this is more than just an ephemeral work." However Kadish believed the EP followed covered the "familiar ground" of Lost & Found (2018).