Jhené Aiko — Westside Whimsy

Six years between albums and one thing about Jhené Aiko? Her pen is still going to PEN.

Westside Whimsy feels like Jhené getting back to the core of what has always made her music so recognizable: atmospheric R&B, conversational songwriting, vulnerability, sensuality and those moments where it feels like we’re reading a page straight out of her journal. She taps into love, detachment, heartbreak, desire and accountability without trying to make any of it sound prettier than it actually feels. Very water sign coded. The Cancer in me gets it every single time.

Sonically, there’s a warmth and ease throughout this album that I really love. Jhené has talked about the project being influenced by the music she grew up on, including ’90s R&B, rap and soul, while also pulling from West Coast culture, beaches, road trips and that California lifestyle. And you can HEAR it. The production is dreamy and spacious but still has enough bass and rhythm underneath it to keep the album moving.

That’s always been one of my favorite things about Jhené: you know a Jhené record when you hear one. Her production choices are so specific to her world. Those airy vocals, layered harmonies, hypnotic melodies and warm instrumentation give her music this almost meditative quality, but underneath all of that softness is a writer who can be slick, funny, blunt, sensual and sometimes a little unhinged. Her delivery can be so peaceful that you almost miss what she actually just said.

“Love Bomb” with Ab-Soul is easily one of my favorites. Their chemistry has always felt natural, and considering their history of collaborating, Soul feels completely at home in Jhené’s world. It’s one of those collaborations where neither artist has to overpower the other for the record to work.

Then there’s “Ceiling (Freestyle).” Jhené’s freestyles have ALWAYS been some of my favorite records from her. There’s something about when she gets into that stream-of-consciousness bag and just lets her thoughts wander. Those records usually give us some of her most honest writing because it feels less structured and more like we’re sitting inside her head while she processes everything.

“Neighbors” with Larry June is another standout. That pairing makes so much sense because neither one of them has to step outside of their own sound. Larry brings that laid-back Bay Area cool while Jhené keeps everything dreamy and intimate. It’s smooth without feeling sleepy, and having Larry on the album adds another piece of California to a project already so rooted in Jhené’s West Coast identity.

And then we get “So Good” with Kendrick Lamar, which feels like another full-circle moment considering their musical history. Kendrick and Jhené have been collaborating since the early 2010s, including “Growing Apart (To Get Closer)” and later “Stay Ready (What a Life)” from Sail Out. Hearing them reconnect all these years later on a project centered around home and Jhené’s roots just feels right.

What I appreciate most about Westside Whimsy is that it doesn’t sound like Jhené spent six years away trying to figure out how to fit into what R&B sounds like right now. She sounds like herself. At 20 songs, she gives herself room to explore different emotions and textures while keeping that same sonic thread running throughout the project.

And Jhené will always be special to me beyond the music. My first concert EVER was B2K when I was a kid and she opened for them. I’ve been a fan ever since. So being grown now and still listening to her, still connecting with her writing and now getting to review her music is a little full-circle moment for me too.

My early standouts: “Love Bomb” ft. Ab-Soul, “Ceiling (Freestyle),” “Neighbors” ft. Larry June, “So Good” ft. Kendrick Lamar, “Ghost” and “Nothing Nice to Say.”

Jhené knows her sound. She knows her pen. And she knows how to make vulnerability feel like its own little universe.