Ripe Fruit Falls But Not In Your Mouth

Hua LI has often worked the fruitful tension between opposing forces, whether being mixed-race, bisexual, or overtly political and softly vulnerable. Now the "half-Chinese, half-militant, half-rapper of your heart" is back with "ripe fruit falls but not in your mouth", her most ambitious and personal record to date. Playing between hazy R&B, hip-hop, jazz and electronic, Hua Li's sophomore LP takes the imaginary garden as a proxy for cultivating home. With complex vocal arrangements, lush production by Alex Thibault (aka Gloze), and big, vibrant mixing by TNGHTs Lunice, ripe fruit is a private confessional on a loud-ass record. Following 2019s Dynasty and 2020s critically acclaimed Yellow Crane EP, "ripe fruit" is characteristically libertine. Textured and sensual, the Montreal multi-hyphenate balances her rich, waveforming tone with danceable, electronic signatures. The rapper is fierce and frequently funny, erupting from gauzy runs to deliver a quick uppercut that stings. With hooky, addictive features by Ambrose Getz and Darkus Millon, ripe fruit is an intimate record of healing, with Montreals nightlife at it's heart.An artful collaborator, Hua LI co-wrote and performed on Gayance's 2023 Polaris short-listed album, Masquerade, and is the touring DJ for Inuk electro-pop throat singer, Riit. Her charismatic stage show has taken her around the world, including tours with Cadence Weapon and Fat Tony (serving as the formers touring DJ), to Reykjaviks Secret Solstice Festival, the Montreal International Jazz Festival, and Pride Toronto.Luminous and compelling, Hua LI shows it takes tenderness to let things ripen, and guts to let things die. In-between is a kind of rapture that begs to be savoured. For Fans Of: Gayance, Tirzah, FKA Twigs, Heems, Tkay Maidza1. Born the Shape2. In the Fall3. Part Time Muses4. Feed Me Petals (ft. Ambrose Getz)5. Cherrier6. Sanctions of the Heart7. Whip Around (ft. Darkus Millon)8. Innsbruck9. Crop Up10. Peonies