Destin Conrad’s wHIMSY: Jazz Meets Contemporary R&B
When Destin Conrad first stepped into the Los Angeles studio for wHIMSY, he arrived with nothing but a voice, a piano, and a handful of ideas. In just two weeks, that spark became a vibrant, jazz-inflected album that hums with spontaneity, energy, and improvisation. It feels like stepping into a smoky late-night club where every note is alive, yet it stands as a polished studio masterpiece.
wHIMSY pays homage to the greats. Billie Holiday’s tenderness, Chet Baker’s quiet ache, Miles Davis’ fearless improvisation, and Nina Simone’s intensity echo throughout the record. Conrad never imitates. Instead, he fuses these influences with contemporary R&B, crafting a sound that is unmistakably his own, timeless yet fully of the moment.
The album thrives on its collaborators. Terrace Martin’s saxophone converses fluidly with Conrad’s voice, James Fauntleroy layers harmonies that shimmer, Keyon Harrold’s trumpet punctuates moments of tension and warmth, Vanisha Gould adds dynamic vocal interplay, and Ambré lends her signature tone. Brushed drums, warm piano, nimble bass, and subtle production flourishes such as echoing horn lines and syncopated rhythms create a textured canvas for Conrad’s expressive storytelling. On drifting, for example, the piano dances lightly over a delayed vocal loop, creating the sensation of gliding through a hazy, midnight cityscape.
Tracks like LOVE!, drifting, BOREDOM, A Lonely Detective, and wASH U AWAY showcase the album’s emotional and stylistic range. LOVE! is intimate and direct, capturing the emotional clarity reminiscent of Holiday’s ballads. drifting moves dreamlike, balancing improvisation with modern R&B phrasing, while piano and brushed drums weave like water around a rock. BOREDOM turns mundane frustration into clever musicality, echoing Nina Simone’s playful wit. A Lonely Detective is cinematic and noir-tinged, a duet full of tension and storytelling that evokes the drama of an intimate jazz club. wASH U AWAY stands as the album’s emotional core, horns and vocals entwining in a call-and-response that bridges jazz tradition with contemporary R&B, leaving a lingering sense of warmth and reflection.
The brilliance of wHIMSY lies in its balance. It honors the lineage of jazz while asserting Conrad’s creative voice. Jazz here is not a museum piece. It is alive, in dialogue with R&B’s present pulse, with every track carrying his fingerprints.
Destin Conrad has not just released an album. He has made a statement, placing himself in conversation with the giants of the past while staking his claim as one of the most daring voices of the present. wHIMSY is playful, soulful, and ambitious, a project that reminds us music is at its best when it refuses to stand still.