One artist stands by his career and watches his discography’s glorious birth after a four-year gestation of a debut album, while the other sheds tears over his own imminent demise as he approaches the pinnacle of his mic-running in Free Fall.
United under the song “Free Fall,” Nigerian singer Tems and North Carolina rapper J. Cole represent two opposing ends of a musical spectrum, clearly expressed through the marriage of the songbird’s youthful longing and the lyricist’s cunning.
The delightful output takes the form of a melodic dance of sexual tension, rife with the tug-of-war that accompanies the struggle of not knowing whether to sacrifice more pieces of himself for the sake of the life of a dying relationship or to leave and hold on to what little dignity is left.
The three-minute “Free Fall” assumes the structure of a dancehall-feeling R&B song, set on a dreamy and nostalgic production consisting of a throbbing yet inertia-inducing bass, complemented by crooked cowbell beats, random hi-hats, and a guitar loop. reminiscent of Sting’s iconic 1993 single “Shape of My Heart”.
A tragedy born of two lovers overcome by mistrust and disoriented heartbreak, “Free Fall” is a clash of worlds with conflicting interests, emerging from a soil filled with questions about the authenticity of love (“I’ve fallen too deep / And you looked at me, then you fell with me”) and the power a person has over themselves when they’re in love (“I don’t know if I can fight what you’re doing in your mind”).
With Tems playing the dissatisfied but not entirely disillusioned lover, J. Cole finds himself in the niche of Tems’ weakness, trying to carve a place in his heart from which he’s been banished.
But the plot has deeper implications.
Listen to “Free Fall”:
With tactical imagery like Tems’s: “It’s too late for you, baby, I guess I can’t let you in / I’m not open anymore” and Cole’s response: “Now the key I once had to your heart is gone. fit / I have three choices: you kick the door or you lock it,” set the pair on a whirlwind power struggle.
The resistance of attachment and Cole’s inability to accept the humbling reality that they are not a good match leads the musicians to find themselves as helpless props, caught in a loop that sees Cole live as an obsessive wanderer with stalking tendencies and Tems. into an unwilling slave to circumstance.
Yet the pair are willing to carry on a sour romance. Tems’ soft, resigned croon, coupled with the lyricist’s powerful performance and urgent despair, illustrate the volatile power dynamics that make those involved in such unhealthy breakups like hapless marionettes dangling on emotional strings.
The song depicts in real-time the dichotomous wrestling match that takes place in the mind when a relationship ends, and the resulting consequences that must be lived with externally.
