Featuring two utterly devastatingly beautiful vocals, the pairing of rising R&B star Gallant and British icon Seal is one made in the proverbial heaven. The first time we saw this Miles Evert (Th3rdBrain)-directed video, there were tears in our eyes. The latest in Gallant’s “In The Room” series (you can watch Episode 1 with Sufjan Stevens here), the two team up on an acoustic version of “Weight In Gold,” taken from Gallant’s forthcoming debut album Ology, released by fledgling US label Mind Of A Genius on April 6. “Seal was the guy that made it okay to straddle genres. He just absolutely refused to conform,” Gallant tells i-D. “Hearing his lyrics as a kid completely transformed my idea of being an artist, being honest in what you write, being black… all of it… and to be even standing in the same room as him, let alone singing a song I wrote with the dude was utterly unreal.” Shot in one take, the video is the perfect visual marker as to why the track, which has had over 20 million plays online, has attracted fans including Zane Lowe, Annie Mac and Elton John.
Gallant is one of our very favorite newcomers of 2016; bestowed with a soaring soprano that displays both weight, depth an sweet, sweet emotion, the Maryland born, L.A-based singer has worked with Adrian Younge, ZHU and Jhene Aiko on his aforementioned debut Ology. “I’ve waited a long time to say everything that I’m saying in this album and it’s terrifying to think that people will hear it,” says Gallant. “But I couldn’t be more proud of this body of work and I hope people take it in a way that’s as honest as I was when I was making it.”
Pre-order Gallant’s new album here
Press play on “Weight In Gold” and stay tuned for more of Gallant’s extraordinary In The Room collaborations…