Pink Siifu’s music fuels emotion. It’s layered with unpredictable musical arrangements that crawl in-between moments, exploring a mind-body connection. How is it possible to be in a trance but still be hit with the funk? Siifu imagines this rarity with experimental soundscapes rooted in nostalgia and collective memory propelled against time and space.
The 29-year-old songwriter captures earthen experiences and transcends stories into the galaxies in his latest album, Gumbo’! The 18 tracks read as a stream of consciousness, sweeping through genres and packed with spastic flow that fluctuates between a punching cadence and a Southern drawl. Born Livingston Matthews, the LA-based rapper was raised in Birmingham and Cincinnati, and while his music travels from city to city, his soul flies above the cosmos.
The culinary dish gumbo, a staple of New Orleans cuisine and another example of Siifu’s regional flair, translates to “ki ngombo” meaning “okra” in several West African languages. It’s a fusion of seasonings and ingredients –– and the taste pleasantly intensifies with each bite. The inventiveness and nourishment procured in the soup measures equal parts to Gumbo’! — a bold fusion of hip hop, jazz, and acid-punk. Just like okra is the primary fixing in the stew, Gumbo’! is a central piece to Siifu’s deliberative body of work. It unfolds into an atmospheric, downtempo groove grounded in abstract soul, and it stretches itself into dimensions of creative flux — a slight departure sonically and thematically from previous releases, though his producer alter-ego “iiye” still makes an appearance. The album features a combination of guest appearances, producers, and personal voice memos that rely on each other to create the perfect mixture.
Siifu’s first notable full-length album, ensley, debuted in 2018 — an emotive and personal tribute to the Black community. This work introduced what seemed like the first chapter in a timeless novel. He sampled 1970s funk and gospel-coated hymns that spun into background loops. Its verses carried messages of shining optimism. “It’s all about the mind how we getting it/It’s all about the time now we’re giving it/You know you be divine when you feeling it,” he rapped on “pray everyday.” On “skin made of gold,” Siifu invited us into his process –– he whispered clues, signaling to the listener to hang on to each word and declared his love for Black people with uplifting thoughts.
His 2019 EP Black Sand, a partnership with Akai Solo, evoked a J-Dilla sensibility. He kept this sonic momentum, teaming up with producer Ahwlee as the duo B. Cool-Aid. Siifu appeared on projects with Australian electronic group the Avalanches. He paired with Virginia rapper Fly Anakin, releasing FlySiifu’s in 2020 and the EP $mokebreak –– an embodiment of crisp deliveries over beats synonymous with conscious, backpacker hip hop.
Siifu revealed another epoch of his artistic conviction in a 2020 full-length album entitled N…. –– it was a polemic, a declaration of resistance, a nod to empowerment, and a fist in the air against fascism, racism, and police violence inflicted on Black bodies. It was unabashedly healing; it was punk, and it was necessary. In 2021, he revisited the project and released a 40-track deluxe edition, accompanied by a short film. The performance piece draws inspiration from the intersection of raucous hardcore like Bad Brains and the introspective cultural movement of Afrofuturism. Siifu continued to sprinkle tracks with lyrical ingenuity, collaborating with underground artists Maassai and Moor Mother.
This material was a fitting addition to the latest sound and perspective in Gumbo’!, which dropped this past August –– a stunning collection of poetry devoted to his predecessors, the Atlanta-based hip hop and soul group Dungeon Family collective. Rhythmically, his music is reminiscent of UGK, but Siifu is intentionally carving his own visionary “spaceways” –– a phrase that inspired Sun Ra’s interplanetary sound.
The album’s title track, “Gumbo’! 4 tha Folks, Hold On,” is an affectionate shout out to the community. “We used to smile/ We was kids, little babes, runnin’ round/All this love let it fall from the road,” Siifu, in a raspy voice, sings. “Got love from older folks down to the youth,” Big Rube ends with rich declaratives. “Wayans Bros.” and “Roscoe” are hype songs with hard-hitting, jangly rhythms while “Back’!” dips into a slowed-down trap ballad. In “Fk U Mean / Hold me Down,” Siifu plays with contextual details –– a crescendo of piano chords weave in and out of lyrics that set a scene: the sun is beaming, there’s comfort food, shadow dancing, words of reparations, and a slick interruption of a pastor’s sermon that quickly transitions into a narration about “The Humpty Dance” and Tupac. This is a song about his family holding him down — extended, familiar, and intimate.
The lo-fi beat “Scurrrred” includes a five-person squad as Big Rube sets the mood with a spoken word introduction. Siifu exposes a vulnerability touching on familial ties and Georgia Anne Muldrow’s earthy vocals suspend over disparate horns and drums. On “SMILE (wit yo Gold),” a captivating Siifu floats alongside singers Coco O. and V.C.R. The band Butcher Brown serenades with haunting percussion, and the song closes with a sentimental message from what could be Siifu’s father — a proud and tender moment.
Siifu shuffles in suggestive murmurs that trod along heavy bass and hi-hats in “Bussin’ (Cold),” a smooth take on Outkast. There’s variation in tempo and technique. The album’s first single “Lng hair dnt care” produced by Ted Kamal drips into a liquid, futuristic instrumental, while Siifu rhymes in a gruff passage that glides in and out.
Listening to Siifu is like peering through a psychedelic-colored kaleidoscope –– after each turn, there are crystalized beats, sun kissed keys and vocals guided by the constellations. Listeners tap into casual conversations and recordings that appear to be from his inner circle and confessionals that call upon a higher universe, offering blessings. The album is ripe with storytelling, words to pass down, and instrumentation that carries the narrative into everyday tales of celebration and life. It’s made to vibe out, roll down the window, chill with your clique, or dim the lights solo style— it’s relative, raw and reflective.