At the time of writing this it has only been 3 days since Daniel Ceasar has dropped his latest studio album “Son of Spergy” and coming from someone who has listened to his entire discography multiple times, this is the best project that he has released yet and if you haven’t listened to it yet, I highly recommend it. When you first listen to the album you can immediately tell that Caesar’s mood is completely different compared to his other releases. This album feels less like a collection of songs made to be enjoyed by the masses, which just so happens to contain introspective lyrics from Caesar.
It is more like a genuine exploration of his character and his emotions, with the music taking a backseat, acting as a vessel to amplify the story he’s trying to tell. Some people may think that the album is disappointing due to this fact, but I think that his career was always leading to a moment like this.
In Freudian he was a young artist looking at stardom and coming to terms with the sacrifices he would have to make to achieve it. Then in Case Study 01 he was experimenting with his sound trying to figure out what he truly wanted to accomplish with his career. Then in Never Enough he realizes that the stardom he was chasing for his entire career wasn’t really what he thought it would turn out to be, although he was now living his dream, it didn’t complete him.
Finally, with Son of Spergy using all the wisdom he has gained throughout his career, then made an album that feels so honest and vulnerable.
The album’s title refers to his father whose nickname is Spergy. His father was a gospel singer in a choir and the entire project is heavily influenced by the type of man his father was and the relationship he had with him. In interviews Caesar states that this album is the realization of him being exactly like his father. In one of his pop-up shows promoting the album’s release he states that, if someone were to walk away with one thing from this album, he would want it to be that everything is fine and works out the way that it should.
In the first song “Rain Down” listeners can immediately hear both the motifs that will persist throughout the album, that being the gospel influence and the sounds of his father’s hometown in Jamaica. Proceeding Rain Down is “Have A Baby (With Me)” and “Call on Me” which are songs about a relationship which is falling apart and not being able to come to terms with that but doing anything in your power to try and save the sinking ship even to the extent of having a baby. Which then directly leads into “Baby Blue (feat. Nowill Simmonds)”, Norwill Simmonds is the real name of Caesar’s father and whilst his voice is featured on the last 30 seconds of the song, I believe that the feature is also symbolic, with Caesar most likely singing from the perspective of his father about the wonders of having a baby.
He then spends the next two songs on the album “Root of all Evil” and “Who Knows” battling with his desires and his insecurities. After that is “Moon (feat. Bon Iver)” which I interpret as an argument between father and son. Included in the song, lyrics, “I’d rather fight for you the only way I know. That ain’t sustainable,” which I believe was Caesar’s father trying to stop him from pursuing his music career because he’s afraid for his child’s wellbeing as he believes that it’s too risky of a path to take.
Caesar then responds with “Why are you a weapon formed up against me? Is this what you call love? Someday I will leave your home, I’ll be a man, I’ll make my own, and I’ll set this world on fire, you can’t stop me,” defying his father’s wishes and chasing his dreams as he truly believed in his own success.
After Moon (feat. Bon Iver) is what I would consider the turning point in the album starting with the song “Touching God (feat. Yebba & Blood Orange).” Most of the songs before this point are riddled with desperation but in this song, he starts talking to God, reflecting on his shortcomings and while conversing with God he starts to accept who he is and his circumstances. He ends off the song with a prayer sung by a gospel choir stating “Oh, Lord thy kingdom come yes, you’re an awesome God thy will be done, Oh Lord the battle is won on earth and heaven praised be the son.”
In the next song “Sign Of The Times,” he continues to converse with God, saying that he knows God speaks through signs and is asking God if these feelings he’s having for this girl is one of these signs. God then responds to him, saying “No need to be alarmed, it’s just love and the future but so what?”
In the next verse, Caesar asks God if he thinks he should let her know about his feelings, or if he should wait it out and let this relationship blossom first. Before God has a chance to impart his divine wisdom, he tells God that when he’s with this girl he has these constant impulses that want him to rush into their relationship but he then also tells God that he will show restraint because in his own words “I’m stronger now then I used to be.”
This is then immediately followed up by him saying “It might be too late. I’ve gone and spilled my guts. But it feels so great it’s risky, so what?”
This shows that although Caesar now knows better than to rush a relationship, knowing better and doing better are two different things and he just can’t resist the highs that come with what he believes is love. The consequences of his actions are immediately felt in the next track “Emily’s Song” which opens with the lyrics “Why don’t you answer my calls no more? Is it something that I’ve said?” showing that the relationship is now in disarray.
He isn’t confused and he isn’t desperately trying to save the relationship because he knows that these are the consequences of his actions and he was ready to live with that. He then spends the rest of the song thanking her for all the good memories they shared together because at the end of the day one of the albums biggest themes is closure. After the continual degradation of his relationships caused by his lack of patience and restraint, it seems like he is truly ready to give up his need for control and is instead going to let things play out naturally. This is shown in the next song “No More Loving (On Women I Don’t Love) (feat. 646yf4t)” where in the track he is reflecting about his previous shortcomings and how he is no longer going to try to force love. Initially when I heard the final track “Sins of The Father” I was disappointed because I felt like it was a lackluster ending to an otherwise amazing album. In my head I was expecting a grand ending like Freudian but when I go back and analyze the song, I realize what it was trying to accomplish.
Ironically like Freudian the song is split up in two parts with a one minute pause in between each section. The first part of the song is about Ceasar feeling a guilt, most likely caused by him growing distant from his faith over time and God accepting him and loving him in a way no one else could. He then thanks God for being the almighty God and reflects on the evil within his own heart saying “I’ve got all this hate in my heart but I got no place to put it. Tried to leave it behind, but I couldn’t. I need alchemical transmutation.”
In this moment he is saying that he needs to fundamentally change who he is to rid himself of the darkness he has within. This is then followed by a one minute pause of sounds from his fathers hometown. In the second part of the song he talks about how his father was very forgetful , saying “Forgot your birthday, I’m sorry my dear, at least my stance remains clear. I’ll forget your birthday, like every year. Who gives a fuck anyways?” the lyrics framing his forgetfulness in a negative light.
The song also talks about how this trait was passed down to Daniel as he says “Dad was forgetful, he promised a lot. Thankfully, he never got caught. Passed it to me now, I finally can see forgetting’s a gift, thank you, God.”
When he says this there’s no negative undertone behind his words. I believe that this represents Ceasar having inherited a generational curse and through his introspection he seeks forgiveness and growth thus breaking free from repeating the same cycle as his father before him. As I mentioned earlier, closure is a major theme that I’ve interpreted from this album. By the end he has placed his full faith in God and is no longer burdened by guilt and desperation. He now believes that God has a plan for everyone, even when it’s hard to see and that realization lets him relax and allows him to let things unravel naturally.
I truly believe that this is not only the best project that Ceasar has dropped but one of the best projects released in the 2020’s. There’s no doubt in my mind that bare minimum this album will get nominated for a grammy and only time can tell where Caesar’s career will go from here.
Top 5 songs
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#5 – Baby Blue
#4 – Call On me
#3 – Root of all Evil
#2 – Sign Of The Times
#1 – Touching God
