New Balance

Album: Trip (2017)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Jhene Aiko's marriage to producer Dot Da Genius came to an end in August 2016, but their professional relationship continued. He's listed as writer and producer on five tracks on Trip, including this emotional ode to an unnamed love interest. She explained to NPR:

    "I started writing this when I had a crush on this boy. Then I fell out of the crush with him and I couldn’t finish it. It inspired a great first verse but then I realized I didn’t feel that way anymore, so I wasn’t inspired. Then I found love again and was able to finish the song and really be extra, extra passionate about what I was saying. And the stuff in the first verse also applied to the new love."

    It is rumored that the new love interest that Aiko is singing of is her TWENTY88 partner Big Sean.
  • John Mayer has long been on Jhené Aiko's wishlist, but when he did turn up to help the singer with the recording of Trip, she was not at her best. Aiko recalled to Billboard:

    "Basically, [I had] the flu and they're like, 'Okay, he'll come to the studio today.' I'm like, 'Oh no, I feel horrible.' But I wanted [the session] and was taking it. I kept getting up to go to the bathroom to blow my nose and stuff like that 'cause I didn't want to gross him out, but he was amazing.

    He stayed for hours and hours just playing guitar riffs and singing little song ideas and stuff like that. He'll record everything. We recorded everything and I just picked out a few guitar licks that I like and built a beat around them. I played him 'New Balance,' which wasn't complete at the time, and he was like, 'Oh, I love it. I want to try something on this song. Can we add a guitar to the end of that song when the beat switches up?' That was an amazing experience."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders

Chrissie Hynde of The PretendersSongwriter Interviews

The rock revolutionist on songwriting, quitting smoking, and what she thinks of Rush Limbaugh using her song.

Ian Gillan of Deep Purple

Ian Gillan of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan explains the "few red lights" in "Smoke On The Water" and talks about songs from their 2020 album Whoosh!

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin Popoff

Rush: Album by Album - A Conversation With Martin PopoffSong Writing

A talk with Martin Popoff about his latest book on Rush and how he assessed the thousands of albums he reviewed.

Barry Dean ("Pontoon," "Diamond Rings And Old Barstools")

Barry Dean ("Pontoon," "Diamond Rings And Old Barstools")Songwriter Interviews

A top country songwriter, Barry talks about writing hits for Little Big Town, Tim McGraw and Jason Aldean.

Bob Daisley

Bob DaisleySongwriter Interviews

Bob was the bass player and lyricist for the first two Ozzy Osbourne albums. Here's how he wrote songs like "Crazy Train" and "Mr. Crowley" with Ozzy and Randy Rhoads.

Songs Discussed in Movies

Songs Discussed in MoviesSong Writing

Bridesmaids, Reservoir Dogs, Willy Wonka - just a few of the flicks where characters discuss specific songs, sometimes as a prelude to murder.