Normani describes long-delayed debut album 'Dopamine' as the ultimate 'representation of my resilience'

Normani might as well be talking to herself on new single “1:59” when she coos, “don't talk too much, just do that s–t.” Sure enough, on the collaboration with Gunna that dropped on Friday (April 26), the focus is on pillow talk for a job. But the sexy chorus could just as easily be channeling the thoughts of fans who have waited nearly six years for the former Fifth Harmony star to drop her full-length solo debut since that fateful day in 2018, when she tweeted:I have my album title.”

“Just do it st!” you can hear them shouting after the string of singles he's released since leaving FH in 2018, including Advertising sign Hot 100 No. 9 solo debut with Khalid, “Love Lies”. Then there was 2019's No. 7 collaboration with Sam Smith on “Dancing With a Stranger,” that year's irresistible “Motivation,” and Charlie's Angels soundtrack song “Bad To You” with Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj, as well as songs with Megan Thee Stallion (2020 “Diamonds”) and Cardi B (2021 “Wild Side”) and Calvin Harris (2022 “New to You” featuring Tinashe and Offset) since then.

However, no album… until the singer announced the title in February, dopamineand teased the riding-a-rocket-in-a-leather-bikini cover, and then on Friday, finally, the release date: June 14.

“I know what it's like to put out music and records that I don't wholeheartedly believe in. When we were [Fifth Harmony]we didn't get a chance to have a real opinion until the last project we did,” says the singer album-interview-2024/” target=”_blank”>ELLE in a new cover detailing how he plans to release the LP — which was once titled 1906 for the address of her grandmother's house where she grew up, well The butterfly Effect — was serially delayed in part due to her parents' cancer diagnosis; both are doing better now.

Pile on what the profile describes as frustration, “intense, unwarranted Internet scrutiny” and a struggle for creative control early in her career, and you can easily understand the delay.

“I promised myself, 'If God gives me another chance to do things my way, I'm not going to take it for granted,'” she says of the collection, described as a mix of uptempo dance tracks with songs that explore these struggles during and after 5H cleavage. “I think there's a false narrative that because of how long this process has taken, that means I don't care, or that it means I'm more interested in doing other things than getting this job. No one wants this project to come out more than me. I think at the end of the day, if I stand behind it wholeheartedly, it doesn't matter what people think.”

To put this into perspective, he says, “this body of work is really just a representation of my resilience.”

One of the key parts of the album cycle so far has been the outpouring of support she got when she announced the album earlier this year, especially from her former 5H bandmates: Camila Cabello, Ally Brooke, Lauren Jauregui and Dinah Jane. “This is a milestone, knowing everything I went through to get to this point. I wanted to be present in it and not allow any negative comments,” she tells the magazine. “I really wanted to celebrate myself. As for the support from the girls, it's really packed, to be honest. They put us in very unreal conditions. We did the best we could with what we had, but I think it's really nice to see everyone prospering. It was nice at the time [for me] it could also be a moment that could bring us all together.”

He says the album's title is a representation of the “highs and lows” he's endured, while the rocket-themed cover feels “energetic…it feels like a hit.”

Asked how she feels about the state of women, especially black women, in music right now, Normani turns to her, and many other, northern stars: Beyoncé. “I want to see more women in charge. I want to see more black women as presidents. I want to see more black women as CEOs,” she says. “I want to see more black women producing. I know it's all there, but all you need is to get the opportunity and the recognition.”

Normani specifically points out Bay “taking over the cottage” with her Cowboy Carter album, which he dubs “revolutionary… These are the things I set out to do. Now you have country artists who look like us coming out and saying “we've always been here.” I think it's educational not only for music fans, but for the Black community as well. We've pioneered a lot that we don't get credit for. I think it's really cool to see Beyoncé being fearless and doing something much bigger than herself. This is honestly what I want to see more of in every area of ​​the music industry, because we deserve it. I also want to see black women not have to fight so hard. It gets exhausting. We are equally brilliant. We have amazing ideas and our stamina.”

Listen to “1:59” below.