Music royalty Lalah Hathaway has something big on the way for her loyal subjects. After dropping her acclaimed album VANTABLACK just two years ago and its deluxe edition VANTABLACK: EXPANSION PACK last year, she’s keeping her foot on the gas with the forthcoming release of her new album Made In Chicago. The Chicago native introduced the set with the nostalgic single “47th Street,” featuring fellow multiple GRAMMY winner J. Ivy. Before the LP bows in October, she serves up another slice with the cut “Can’t Let Go.”
A quiet storm-ready slow jam, “Can’t Let Go” sounds like classic Lalah. The regal songstress and her frequent collaborator Phil Beaudreau once again share songwriting and production duties, tailoring a love song as timeless and memorable as The Stylistics’ soul classic “You Are Everything,” which they smoothly interpolate into “Can’t Let Go.”
The track begins with the lyric “All I wanna do is love,” which succinctly sums up Lalah’s feelings about the ex-lover she serenades throughout. She yearns for what they once had and hopes to rekindle the flame and feel their fire — not just again, but forever.
“Here I stand with open arms / Holding on to memory / Do you remember me / And the way we used to be, yeah, yeah,” Hathaway reminisces about their past before sharing her hope for their future. “Only time will tell / If you and I are really meant to be / But I still believe in the way we used to be, yeah, yeah.”
Her desire and determination spill into the chorus. “And it seems I can’t let go / I won’t let go / Don’t let go / All I wanna do is love you / You are everything / All I wanna do is love,” she pines.
“Can’t Let Go” is honestly one of Lalah Hathaway’s best songs in recent memory. It evokes the same feelings as iconic tracks from her catalog such as “I’m Coming Back” from her self-titled debut album, her cover of Luther Vandross’ “Forever, For Always, For Love” and “That Was Then” from Self Portrait.
Between “47th Street” and “Can’t Let Go,” Lalah is clearly in a zone on Made In Chicago. Inspired by her hometown and her own past, present and future, her highly anticipated ninth album will feature a tight collection of nine songs. Made In Chicago arrives Thursday, October 1st, coinciding with her father Donny Hathaway’s heavenly 81st birthday. The album will be released on her independent label Hathaway Entertainment in association with The SRG/ILS Group. View the beautiful cover art and tracklist below, and pre-save/pre-add the album on digital music services.
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Lalah Hathaway Made In Chicago tracklist:
1. 47th Street feat. J. Ivy
2. So Smart
3. Follow
4. Can’t Let Go
5. Every Little Thing
6. Rainbo
7. Someday
8. Time
9. Magic
