Victoria Monét breaks down every song on JAGUAR II | Making The Album

5 February 2024, 10:31

Victoria Monét Explains Every Song on 'JAGUAR II' | Making The Album

By Sam Prance

Grammy award winning artist Victoria Monét opens up about the meaning behind every song on JAGUAR II on PopBuzz's Making The Album podcast.

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Making The Album is back with another episode and this time around our guest is Victoria Monét discussing all of the songs on her Grammy winning album JAGUAR II.

To fill you in, Making The Album is a PopBuzz podcast and video series in which we take you, the fans, inside the recording process of your favourite records.

Over the course of the first three episodes, Sam Prance (that's me - hiya) has spoken to Niall Horan about The Show, Ashnikko about Weedkiller and Madison Beer about Silence Between Songs.

Now, Victoria Monét is here to break down JAGUAR II. She talks about working with Kaytranada on 'Alright', explains how she ended up adding her daughter, Hazel Monét, to 'Hollywood', and even gets candid about what it really feels like to finally receive her flowers in the music industry.

Watch the video above to learn how JAGUAR II was made. You can also listen to the full episode on Global Player or whichever platform you use to listen to your podcasts.

To give you a little taster, below are some highlights of what Victoria had to say about each JAGUAR II track.

LISTEN TO VICTORIA MONÉT ON MAKING THE ALBUM NOW

Victoria Monét explains every song on JAGUAR II | Making The Album. Picture: PopBuzz

1) 'Smoke (feat. Lucky Daye)'

'I really wanted to kind of ease people in if they're coming off of the strength of JAGUAR I, just knowing my aesthetic and really tapping back into the 70s world and something that they were familiar with from Victoria. I wanted to just start there, and then venture out a little bit further.'

2) 'Smoke (Reprise)'

'I really think it's just almost my ADHD. I have other ideas that stem from one idea, and I want to put them together and then I want things to flow into each other. And then I'll switch subject. And some songs I never go back to, so they're just that short. It was like, 'cause I was just doing a scratch idea or whatever. But I like it enough to put it on an album.'

3) 'Party Girls (feat. Buju Banton)'

'When [Buju] added his verse, the beat under his verse was actually different. So after he added his verse and sent us the files, we went back in and changed the production to lift and match what he had brought. So he had us level up the production when he got on it. He just inspired us to do so. So I didn't really intend on making a dancehall, reggae influenced song at first, but it just happened because I think it's just in me too. It's something that I loved. Growing up, my mom was listening to Buju and that's how I learned of him as a kid.'

Victoria Monét - Party Girls (Official Video) ft. Buju Banton

4) 'Alright'

'Our first session, I believe was not long after I had Hazel but I've always been a Kaytranada fan. I feel like his music makes you want to get up and dance and like, I love up tempos, but I usually, in my artist capacity, don't write them. Like I, if I'm picking beats, I'm usually going towards the mid tempo slow ones. So working with Kaytranada pulls me out of that and gets me into the world in which he resides.'

5) 'Cadillac (A Pimp's Anthem)'

'You know what I need to [censor my lyrics] because not only is my family listening, my daughter is listening and she keeps saying "motherfucking moment"...['We women been winning since from the beginning of your whole life']. That's a good one. She might not even pick up that up until four because it's like I'm rap singing. Of course, she picks up "motherfucking" of everything she could say.'

6) 'How Does It Make You Feel'

'JAGUAR, the concept is coming out of that shy place and behind the bushes and behind, you know, the rubbish and just like jumping into the light, and like getting and commanding what you want. So, in the theme of the album, I'm glad that [How Does It Make You Feel] exists and is doing what it is doing.'

7) 'On My Mama'

'[The success of 'On My Mama' is] really amazing because that song in particular came at a time in my life where I wasn't feeling confident. And I was feeling really at my lowest. So it just shows you how even when your brain is telling you one thing, God has another plan and reality can tell you another thing if you just stay determined and stay with the course. Like keep fighting for it, you know?'

Victoria Monét - On My Mama (Official Video)

8) 'I'm The One'

'Sometimes you need to hear [songs like [I'm the One]. Like, 'it's their loss babe'!'

9) 'Stop (Askin' Me 4Shyt)'

'Maybe the wildest thing someone's ever done is lick my cheek. And they didn't ask, I guess I need to say "Ask me for shit because I would have told you no!"'

10) 'Hollywood (feat. Earth, Wind & Fire & Hazel Monét)'

'The end of the song is [Hazel] laughing. And it's one of the first times I heard her laugh. So I just recorded that. And in the original track, we had a sample of kids playing and laughing. I was like, 'We should replace that with Hazel.' So that's how it came about that she should be on the record and plus the subject matter means so much. And I think it's full circle that it's a song with the people who inspired the sonic sound of the album with the person who's inspiring me to just, you know, shoot for the stars right now.'

11) 'Good Bye'

'I think saying goodbye to the Jaguar era in that way was really cool. So it's like a goodbye for Jaguar, wanting to wrap everything up in a nice bow. But also, you know, this, and this sonically, I feel like it kind of showcases a lot about the sound of this era of Victoria.'

Victoria Monét - Good Bye (Visualizer)

How do I listen to Victoria Monét's Making The Album episode?

Download the free Global Player app and subscribe to Making The Album via this link to listen to Victoria Monét's episode right now.You can also listen to Victoria's episode on Spotify, Apple and all platforms. Not to mention, you can watch the interview on the PopBuzz YouTube channel as well.

To find out who will be on the podcast next, follow @PopBuzz on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and Facebook.