If you’ve been feeling a bit of a funk deficiency lately, have no fear. Ric Wilson is back on the scene with a new song, “We Aight,” bringing with him one of modern funk’s most stalwart sources, Mayer Hawthorne. Here, they team up with dance production duos Party Pupils and Brasstracks for a colorful, horn-filled nu-disco beat, perfect for Wilson to waltz over with his whimsical delivery and Hawthorne’s warm vocals. In the press release, Ric says, “Being fans of funk and wanting to make a record that feels like a Chicago or Detroit house party, me and Mayer channeled our memories from hometown house parties to make a new legendary house party record. I’m excited for folks to hear the rest of the album later this year.”
Ric is just over a year removed from his last release, the Clusterfunk EP, which was produced by family connection A-Trak and Chromeo. Since then, the Chicago native has been bouncing around, doing performances at festivals and overseas as he works on his next album. Mayer Hawthorne, meanwhile, released his tenth studio album, For All Time, last October, yielding more of a slinky, ’70s inspired collection of bedroom bops.
You can listen to Ric Wilson’s “We Aight” above.