I came up with Valentine as part of a 30-day music-making challenge. I whipped up a track and recorded the vocals in about eight hours. As soon as I was done, I borrowed my sister's sunglasses, threw on my sleeve-less denim jacket, hopped on my bed and proceeded to jump around like I was the only black student in detention with the Breakfast Club.
It's been about a year since then, and although I still love Valentine, it didn't make it onto my EP. I just couldn't figure out the right bass line (among other things #noobproducer). Luckily, my friend Nathan, who is an incredible composer, dropped some much needed wisdom- find a song you like that fits the vibe and see if it helps. Brilliant! I immediately realized I had been listening to Man-eater, by Hall and Oates, at least once a day for the past 6 months. The rhythm of that bass line was exactly what I needed. It was blasting in my ears the whole time and I never noticed it.
I will be performing Valentine for the second time in front of an audience, at my EP Release party, and I can't wait to see if it transports everyone to their favorite music moment from the 80s.