<p>Du Malai is out with a follow-up to his EP &#8220;Heart Bus Despair.&#8221; This EP released just in time for Valentine&#8217;s Day, and is appropriately titled &#8220;Heart Bus Desires.&#8221; The EP tackles the important topics that come with a budding romance, including, but not limited to, the anxiety to dive in deeply, navigating hard feelings and emotional regulation, and finding self-worth and self-love. Heart Bus Desires, has relatable topics for every listener. If you have ever found love, lost love, or struggled with a relationship, this record will definitely have something for you. Rock the Pigeon is proud to break down the EP, track by track.</p>
<p><a href="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-3.02.38-PM.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-23208" src="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-3.02.38-PM.png" alt="" width="1532" height="1016" /></a></p>
<p>Du Malai lets his talents show from the first track. &#8220;Into Me&#8221; is an expression of excitement meeting anxiety when having a new crush. He reflects on self-doubt, questioning his love interest<em> &#8220;baby, are you into me?&#8221;</em> throughout the lyrics. This is an extremely soulful song that features a strong beat and great vocal runs. Mike Vocalz also makes a grand feature on this song. The two artists trade off lines to lift the song to greater heights.</p>
<blockquote><p>After Heart Bus Despair, I wanted to explore emotional regulation in the context of a relationship. Into Me is about that initial crush and all the self-doubt that fuels those first emotions. &#8211; Du Malai</p></blockquote>
<p>After &#8220;Into Me&#8221; Du Malai sings an emotional ballad about ghosting and heartbreak. &#8220;We Were Vibing&#8221; shows just how deep Du Malai&#8217;s feelings are for his love interest. He talks about feeling on top of the world, developing a strong chemistry, all to notice that the &#8220;morning texts&#8221; he loved have ended, and the tone has changed. He is left to wonder if the relationship has come to an end or not. The lack of communication fuels the anxiety that inspired the song. The emotions can be felt long after the song has finished playing.<a href="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-3.02.48-PM.png"><img class="wp-image-23207 alignright" src="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-3.02.48-PM.png" alt="" width="602" height="401" /></a></p>
<blockquote><p>Ghosting is fairly common in the current dating scene. We Were Vibing asks, what happened? I wanted to have the song be in both English and Hausa to highlight that things can get lost in translation. &#8211; Du Malai</p></blockquote>
<p>We journey deeper into the dark side of romance on &#8220;Feelings Hard.&#8221; The pace picks up and so does the intensity, which is perfectly fitting for a song about fighting with the person you are in a relationship with. Du Malai finds himself feeling over being with someone who plays games. As he reflects on wanting a more peaceful and more mature relationship, he also self-reflects and realizes his anger and defensiveness comes from a place of feeling abandoned.</p>
<p>The title track kicks off with a contagious string section before a hip hop beat comes onto the track. &#8220;Heart Bus Desire&#8221; is a spectacular track about heartbreak and moving on. Du Malai does even more self-reflection on this track. He looks inward to understand that he hasn&#8217;t found a perfect match, and he hasn&#8217;t been the perfect match either. <em>&#8220;Now I&#8217;m causing hurt, I did you wrong&#8230;Our love is gone.&#8221; </em>Some of the strongest lyrics in the song go; <em>&#8220;I need to change my destination, Instead of seeking validation&#8230; Deep down, I question my own worth.&#8221; </em></p>
<blockquote><p>The Heart Bus is metaphor for all the different places our hearts take us. Desire explores chasing love to fulfill needs, when really that&#8217;s an inside job not an external one. &#8211; Du Malai</p></blockquote>
<p><a href="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-3.03.06-PM.png"><img class=" wp-image-23206 alignright" src="https://rockthepigeon.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screen-Shot-2024-02-12-at-3.03.06-PM.png" alt="" width="559" height="779" /></a>We hear a sense of hope on &#8220;Desires Diary.&#8221; Du Malai reflects on what he has learned from his past relationship and what the journey and heartbreak has taught him about himself as well. He starts off the song by sharing he is finally ready for love. He reflects on the relationship throughout the lyrics of the song. The lyrics from the previous song replay but with a new sense of confidence, a new tempo, and a slight variation in melody. <em>&#8220;I need to change my destination, Instead of seeking validation&#8230; Deep down, I question my own worth.&#8221; </em> He says, <em>&#8220;Know that I&#8217;m sorry, for real.&#8221; </em>We hear a sense of resolve.</p>
<blockquote><p>Desires Diary is the penultimate episode that revisits the story with some added context. It establishes the full arc and provides a hopeful glimpse into the future. &#8211; Du Malai</p></blockquote>
<p>The last track on the record is &#8220;Groove&#8221; which features Cornelius Turner on vocals. This is an upbeat song with fun percussive elements and a horn section. This song allows the record to end in a hopeful place. Du Malai says,<em> &#8220;Groove is set in the far flung future after the main character has done the work of healing and self-reflection. The former relationship is revisited with the open question &#8211; will they, won&#8217;t they?&#8221; </em>We can certainly hear the progress that the artist has taken throughout the tracks on the EP. Du Malai is an inspiration! &#8220;Groove&#8221; is an energy booster!</p>
<p>Du Malai was born in Lagos, Nigeria and grew up in The Bronx, New York. He is currently based in San Antonio, Texas.</p>
<p>Listen to this incredible EP on Spotify now:</p>
<p><iframe title="Spotify Embed: Heart Bus Desires" style="border-radius: 12px" width="100%" height="352" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/album/22khuL5XoRzPkqFakX4EQb?si=mleWXFCNRgWMHr5okP50Pg&#038;utm_source=oembed"></iframe></p>
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<p>Written by <a href="https://www.submithub.com/m/u/ryancassatareviews">Ryan Cassata</a></p>
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