Top Five Songs: Dirty Computer (Janelle Monáe)

Over the last couple years, I’ve started dipping my toes into expanding my music palate, checking out critically-acclaimed albums from genres and artists I haven’t always sought out. Janelle Monáe’s Dirty Computer is a great example of this, fierce and funky, nimble in its craft and unapologetic in its themes. Here are my favorite songs from the album.

“Crazy, Classic Life” – It says it all in the run-up to the chorus, “Just let me live my life” – this is a song about wanting the same life that everyone wants without being restricted or held back by race, gender, or sexuality. The melody is both lovely and catchy. I particularly love the pre-chorus and the repeated insistence by Monáe that she is “not America’s nightmare.”

Best lyric: “I don’t need a diamond ring, / I don’t wanna waste my youth. / I don’t wanna live on my knees - / I just have to tell the truth.”

“Screwed” – Even though the whole album is strong, this is the start of a run of songs that make up four of my Top Five here. Everything from here to “Make Me Feel” is amazing, and it starts with “Screwed.” As with all the songs listed here, it’s wildly catchy, which, combined with its theme makes it feel like a combination between a march and a dance party. It’s proudly defiant against corrupting forces in the U.S., not giving into despair or buckling. The chorus just sizzles.

Best lyric: “You fucked the world up now, we’ll fuck it all back down.”

“Django Jane” – There’s so much power coming off of this number, Monáe flexing her success in a way that reaches down to pull others up along with her. She champions her victories over oppression and naysayers in intricate, reference-laden rhymes. Unabashedly Black and female, this song is about Jane being a badass and taking up space for herself.

Best lyric: “Jane Bond, never Jane Doe and I Django, never Sambo.”

“PYNK” – This is the first Janelle Monáe song I ever sat down and listened to, after its music video came out and made a stir for its imagery, feminism, and inclusivity (a.k.a. the “check those vagina pants!” video.) For starters, it’s just a fantastically listenable, hummable song, with a terrific groove. Those snaps! I love the complex simplicity of the verses, lists of “pynkness” that encapsulate everything Jane loves about her girl, then rising triumphantly through the chorus into a joyous celebration of female sexuality. Slam dunk all the way!

Best lyric: “So here we are in the car, / Leavin’ traces of us down the boulevard. / I wanna fall through the stars. / Getting lost in the dark is my favorite part.”

“Make Me Feel” – Soooo danceable, oh man. I like the bouncy groove of the verses and chorus, especially when combined with the raw power of the pre-chorus. A terrific love song, artless in the simplicity of its themes but bringing it hard with the atmosphere and vibe of it.

Best lyric: “It’s like I’m powerful with a little bit of tender, / An emotional sexual bender - / Mess me up, yeah, but no one does it better.”