Roy Wood$ – Exis

Roy Wood$ – Exis

As hype of The Weeknd´s newest effort is on its high point, I figured it would be nice to shed some light on the newest protégé of Drake, Roy Woods (stylized as Wood$). With good reason, because in Woods first effort Exis, you´ll find everything you might be missing on Beauty Behind The Madness, I definitely feel this way. There is this certain kind of murky blend of r´n´b that made The Weeknd translate into the experience or second-hand fiction of life as a lost twenty-something – between lust, frustration, loads of substances and a creative drive being fueled and destroyed by all those things. However, it would not bring Woods any justice to just put him into the line of Weeknd imitators.

The similarities in sound are pretty much obvious. While there might not be a grand darkness and haze as on House of Balloons, Exis relies heavily on deep atmospheric beats and the ambiance the whole OVO imprint, fathered by Drake, are known for. But Woods doesn´t seem to have such a problem with his persona and his lifestyle, or the changes of his lifestyle, which are a selling point for The Weeknd´s narrative. The point of self-loathing on "Unleashed" like Woods singing "I still don´t like myself" and "Should I attempt suicide again? / I still don´t see the point in us living in hell" never points inward only, in this track Woods describes his need to get out of his lifestyle and put his art into use for him and others. The "blunt to the face to forget these problems" also doesn´t remain a pure escape as Woods points out that he is fed up of living his life of crime. In contrast, the House of Balloons solution would have ended in numbing the pain and getting used to a status quo of some sort.

And this self-assured way of thinking carries through all moments of Exis. In "Get You Good" Woods brings bravado and a sensual vibe into a crisp instrumental that could have appeared on the most stripped down moments of The Dream´s discography. The sexual here is not exaggerated or turning into anything other than the usual r´n´b romance, no pain or frustration to be compensated. "Go Go Go" might reference pain, but here Woods is taking his relationship and sex for healing and coping with his stress in life (which accidentally results in him channeling some Frozen "Let It Go" vibe). To best describe the relationship towards woman his line "I´m giving it all to you, naked and raw, raw as my heart" works best: There is the ambivalence of pure sexuality and lust intertwined with the metaphorical rawness of Woods´ emotional state and search for some kind of haven. Intercourse as a means of growing closer packed between a seemingly normative hornyness of a young male – quite believable in all of the lyrics.

Drake feature "Drama" sees the two singers taking their point of view away from themselves and tackling the narrative of a young girl being sucked into a lifestyle of parties and "fuck niggas". Interesting on this track is the lack of direct commentary or moral of this story. While Woods proposes the girl "to take the L" and admit defeat, there is still a love-songy vibe to him and Drake addressing her. Singing "Girl that´s not on me" Woods still somehow identifies with the vices he sings about and even though he doesn´t put himself in the same category as the "fuck niggas" he´s still part of the problem and defeat is the only option for the character, losing relations and bonds to friends and family. The first verse of "Jealousy" furthers this point with Woods addressing his behavior of drinking and substance abuse leading to his girl leaving him and becoming jealous after the success hit. But confident as he is, he puts his struggle for a better life in the front and sticks to the people that stick with him and his traits. 

Opener “Innocence” brings the experience full circle – Exis works best when listen to on repeat and I promise it won´t bore you – as all the themes are tightly packed with Woods arriving on the Toronto music scene, being intoxicated, confident and still conscious of making it for his brethren. As the bridge repeats the lines “Still fucked up, you still fucked up” everything on Exis becomes a true reflexive journey, a little tongue in cheek, fueled on bravado and still motivated to create – in other words the innocence of a young artist. Exis might still lack some lyrical prowess at the edges and for some might even come off as a darker, street version of the music an artist like Omarion makes, but if one thing, Roy Woods has a powerful drive and a voice that has the potential to become and stay interesting throughout his journey. And as he narrates things here, he will not be trapped by the workings of the industry, becoming a strange mixture of a pop-star wanting to be a dark and conflicted persona.

7 / 10