New Video:
Alicia Waller's 'Soul' Is A Celebration of Black Women

Just released on December 9, Alicia Waller and the Excursion's new video for her song Soul is a celebration of Black women, as she puts it, "inspired by the heightened cultural tensions of 2020."

It comes from her February 2020 release Some Hidden Treasure. The video uses images that document scenes in New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic. The diverse Black women featured in the video are among Waller's friends.

She describes the track, and her desire to portray Black identity in her music, in a media release.

"It was my aim to create a bluesy celebration of Black sound. I wanted it to sound unapologetically soulful—unapologetically Black—and to feel like an expedition that traveled through time as it weaved through different periods of Black American music. 

More specifically, I wanted to celebrate myself and my people. I wanted to uplift our passion, our nuance, and the incredible love that we share between us—all of us who experience so much by being born Black in this weighted world. The video reflects my effort to show all of these things while centering, above all, the Black woman in a way that is without fetishization or the male gaze. I wanted to share us in the way that we see ourselves, which is exactly as we are—powerful, strong, beautiful, and free."

The track begins with a groove that is undeniably bluesy, with a sonically satisfying grit to the guitar and overall feel, and a sophisticated take on classic blues rhythms. That theme weaves itself in and out of explorations into other iconic Black American musical genres. Waller's big, rich voice is perfect for the music, accompanied by a rhythmic chorus. Her voice melds the styles together into a single musical journey.

Check it out for yourself.