On July 17th, Steve Lacy dropped his third studio album “Oh yeah?”, a project that’s been steadily anticipated for some time. The Compton native originally broke onto the music scene in the early 2010s as the teenage guitarist for the Grammy-nominated alternative R&B band The Internet. Over the years, he has built a reputation as a genre-blurring artist who creates music largely on his own terms. The name Steve Lacy is one that isn’t easily construed to a single box, and this new project proves exactly that.
This new album not only explores various themes, but it also delves into different sounds, and is described as Steve’s most ambitious and personal art to date according to press materials. “‘Oh yeah?’ is a record for guitar kids who love synths and synth kids who love guitars. It’s an album splashed with raw openness, energetic connection, sonic beauty, and some of Lacy’s most personal, transparent lyrics.” To visually signal this new era, Lacy even cut off his signature braids ahead of the album’s rollout, a symbolic transformation matching a record where he stated he finally feels “fully present in my body,” according to Complex.
The first track, which is the title track, starts off in a synthy, dream-pop vibe where Lacy seems to miss his partner. He urges himself to get up out of the dumps, singing “I don’t wanna lose again. Please, I beg. Could my hope be of value?”
“The music he produced on this album is different from my usual music taste, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. I think my favorite part was just how deep the songs really are even though there are some lyrics that are more “unserious” than others.” Bezalel Starr, 19, says.
“Additionally, the music and the lyricism worked perfectly together,” Starr continues; “There wasn’t a time where I mostly focused on the sounds than I did the lyrics, and I think that’s a hard thing to accomplish.”
As the album carries on, new songs are introduced with features including SZA, Erykah Badu, and Cecile Believe. On “is it cool?” Lacy and SZA deliver a heavy dose of raw R&B, operating as a dialogue between two emotionally exhausted lovers grappling with vulnerability and self-sabotage. Their distinct styles mesh to emphasize the song’s underlying tension and deep yearning for connection.
On “pure colour,” Badu’s flowy, freeing presence alters the album’s pacing entirely. Her voice adds a sense of timelessness into Lacy’s world, elevating the track into something deeply hypnotic. Lacy first named Badu as one of his biggest musical influences in 2016, so this song truly stands as a full-circle moment. The song also validates Lacy’s artistry, showcasing his ability to hold his own alongside an industry legend while pushing his signature alt-soul sound into different avenues.
Collaborating with Cecile Believe on “lovesexdrugbomb” represents the album’s most radical change. Known for her work in the experimental and hyper-pop soundscapes, Believe brings a sharp electronic edge to Lacy’s traditional sound and arrangements. Believe introduces an unpredictable edge and adds synthetic layers that challenge Lacy’s instrumentation, resulting in a futuristic alt-pop record that expands his musical boundaries.
A consistent theme of love and blurred lines resurfaces throughout this project. Steve Lacy frequently explores the gray areas of romance, alternating between deep infatuation and emotional uncertainty. In “the feeling,” he contemplates a previous lover while softly echoing a plea for clarity throughout the chorus: “Am I your baby? I think I’m in love with you. I think you should be in love with me.” This sense of yearning carries directly into the seventh track, “nothing.” On this song, Lacy admits he cannot stop thinking about his love interest, mentioning the track’s title with the central line, “nothin’ can keep you off my mind.”
This intense, unfiltered vulnerability has sparked conversations on social media since the album’s release. Across platforms like TikTok and Instagram, listeners have pointed out how Lacy perfectly captures the messy realities of modern relationships. Clips of the toxic, self-sabotaging confessions on “is it cool?” and the heavy yearning on “nothing” have gone viral, with fans flooding comment sections calling the record “a whole mood” and praising how his lyrics feel incredibly relatable.
Amani Jackson, 19, says that “show you me’ is my favorite song on the album, mostly because I love the way he utilized his vocal tone on this track.” Adding, “The layering over a fairly simple instrumental really complements each other, on top of the fact that the song is extremely catchy. Also, the song is just real. I feel like the yearning phases that he illustrates throughout the song is just super relatable.”
Steve’s vocals are melodic and smooth throughout the entire project. Combined with the laid-back production, the overall vibe stays very tranquil to start off with, wrapping listeners in a slow, atmospheric R&B groove. However, the album quickly takes off and shifts gears, utilizing instruments such as electric guitars, intentional basslines, and more to build a much richer landscape. This gradual transition transforms this record from a bedroom-pop style into an altering, psychedelic experience, showing Lacy’s gift for musical pacing and storytelling.
When asked if Lacy’s storytelling has evolved or shifted in their opinion, Jackson noted thoughtfully that “I really loved the diversity in vibes for this project. You had some acoustic indie type stuff on here, mixed with classic rock like on “bebe” — which is my second favorite.”
Ultimately, “Oh yeah?” moves away from the radio-friendly structure of Lacy’s massive hit “Bad Habit” in 2022. This ten-track project serves as an experimental, inward retreat, taking influence from rock, psychedelia, trip-hop, and soul. It proves that Lacy is refusing to be trapped by the expectations of pop stardom.
Starr says, “When I needed songs to reminisce about things or people who didn’t work out, Steve delivered.”
