The first single from Ariana Grande’s upcoming 3rd album is a fun and catchy piece, with a funky beat, despite its similarities to last year’s ‘Problem’.
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‘Focus’, the first single from Grande’s upcoming third album, Moonlight, is an infectious track which will definitely have people jamming along when it comes on the radio.
The thing about Ariana Grande is that whenever she has released a new album, the holistic style of it as a record is slightly different. Her debut album Yours Truly was heavily influenced by 90s pop and R&B, whereas the follow-up My Everything leaned firmly into the genre of EDM, and this track yet again pulls the singer in a slightly different direction stylistically.
The singer’s vocals, are as usual, displaying her extended range, and there are multiple of the runs that she is known for, as she sings lyrics that she says are about wanting people to focus on who she is as an artist.
These are placed against the backdrop of a tinny drum track, solid bass booms every so often and synth usage which is reminiscent of 80s pop. Then you have the instrumental, which features trumpets that strangely fit with the rest of the track. It’s one of those tracks that on paper sounds like it might not work too well, but somehow manages to pull it off.
For me, the only thing that pulls the quality of this track down are its similarities to last year’s ‘Problem’. The musical pause between the instrumental and the final chorus is pretty much exactly the same. Also, both tracks feature a male weirdly talking, rather than singing, in the chorus- which frankly is unnecessary given Grande’s vocal talent.
Nevertheless it is a funky track, with a sexy and stylish video, which I have yet been able to shift from my head.
‘Focus’ is out now via Republic.
