New York Jazz & R’n’B artist Raina Sokolov-Gonzalez grapples with the gaze on ‘Better For You’.
Focusing on the experience of being objectified and the ambiguous response to this reality, ‘Better For You’ examines the heterosexual dynamics of sex and how this often prioritize men’s pleasure over mutual enjoyment. With its smooth jazz tones swaying to the rhythm of the tracks salsa influences, an undeniable sensuality ensues allowing Gonzalez’s words to pack even more of a punch. Looking further into the gaze, Gonzalez hones in on the conditioning that this can have upon women also:
“It also depicts the flip side of this, where we become or can become hooked on being the desired one; the way we come to need it, the way our identity becomes tied to this positioning. This is the ambiguity, the grey”.
‘Better For You’ is taken from Gonzalez’s upcoming LP “IF THEY’RE MINE”, set for release this Spring.