Rising Jamaican songstress Stalk Ashley is easily the hottest artiste to watch in the coming years, on the release of her debut EP, Excuses, Pt. 1. 

The six-track project, dropped last Friday (December 3) under Atlantic Records UK, is a towering ode to independence, love lost and revenge—delivered through Stalk Ashley’s signature marriage of R&B and dancehall. 

There’s a song for everyone in Excuses, which clocks in at just over 17 minutes collectively. 

“My baby, my brainchild. My very first project. EXcuses? none left, It’s FINALLY here,” the Manchester native wrote to Instagram fans on the EP’s release. “Welcome to the first chapter of REAL stories weh happen inna the good gyal life. To my most loyal fans who stuck beside me, this 4 U, and to my new fans, welcome to the ride.”

Here is my reaction to the EP: 

Complicated

The lead single from Excuses is a sultry appetizer as Stalk Ashley flips the finger to her conflicted love interest. In Complicated, the singer questions herself and finally concludes that the “man” in her life is anything but. 

“Tired of fighting with you now. Tired of hearing your lies. 
Sick of your [expletive deleted], nigga I’m movin’. 
Beggin’ me to stay but beggars ain’t choosers… 
Neva know weh yuh have til it gone, what a waste of years” 

She further slams her ex-flame as replaceable and useless, berating his promises to change as nothing but excuses (ironically). 

“It could all be so simple but you had to make it complicated. 
I shoulda never have to feel this way; been so many times I tried to walk away. 
Now I’m finally on my way, bye-bye, baby. Bye”

Pretty Ugly

Next up is Pretty Ugly, a sassy, electric guitar-infused ballad featuring 27-year-old American rapper/songwriter (and son of legendary Jamaican dancehall-turned-gospel deejay Papa San) BEAM. 

A pensive Stalk Ashley muses about the seeming incompatibility between herself and a new lover and wonders whether he really loves her or is only into her for the sake of her attractiveness. Rather than torment herself, she urges the indecisive partner to just leave her be.

“Seh yuh like my smile and yuh like my style,
And yuh cling on to me sumn like my child,
Do, nuh tell mi nutn, cuz I gave you time…
I love you, so mi only ago wish you di best, 
Gi’ yuh everytin’ but you jus gi mi finesse, so
Choose pretty ugly, babe you woulda let me go if you love me,
But yuh nuh love me,
Why don’t you love me?
I know you don’t,” Stalk Ashley belts in Pretty Ugly.

In response, BEAM croons that contrary to her insecurities they are perfect for each other.

“Probably was a link up, I would never think that,
You the one I think of, nights I have a kickback,
We were more than friends, 
I was out here doggy-paddling in swimming pools,
Not realising you the one I’m swimming to,” BEAM sings before breaking out into a Patois-infused rap set. 

Murda

Murda is a classic tale of a woman out for revenge, as Stalk Ashley swears to correct a wrong done to her, if she ever sees him again. 

“Right now a murda, 
And mi a do all a di tings yuh neva heard of, 
And mi wi [expletive deleted] you up, so try nuh come further,
But if mi hurt, doh seh a word. A murda,” she promises.

Devotion (Interlude)

What the shortest song on Excuses lacks in runtime, Stalk Ashley EASILY makes up for with a vocally powerful interlude. 

“Lie, lie, lies,
Empty promises,
You know you ain’t [expletive deleted],
That goes for both of us,
Yuh tell mi lie, nuh love nuhbady but yuhself,
Don’t even pretend to give a damn ’bout no one else” 

Summer 16

The interlude spills over into Summer 16— a saucy, confident clap back to a prideful man who wasted Stalk Ashley’s time and energy. Now, that she’s a hot commodity, he returns yet again, but this time, the talented songbird declares proudly that she “don’t need no man right now” and I can’t be mad at that! #GwehBwoy

“I sacrificed,
I wanted you more than another life, 
I thought I was the one who could suffice, 
Gone, them sleepless nights, too,
Love can turn yuh in a damn fool,
Looking back like [expletive deleted] you!”

Indecisive 

Closing out a solid project, Stalk Ashley, in control and not one to shy away from her sex appeal, propositions a ‘live-in-the-moment’ life in Indecisive. 

Why should she have to choose between male and female trysts when she can have both?

“Cuz I know jus how you like it, 
Bring it back, yeah,
Baby swing it back, yeah
Mi fi be yuh side man, 
You fi do what I say, yeah…
While we’re still young and dumb, I wanna do wild [expletive deleted],
I wanna go cray, wanna hear you moan if you get it in the morning.
You want me to choose who I wanna be with, I can’t even choose where I wanna eat at.
I want Tiffany and Britney and Steven, Cuz otherwise it’s so uneven.”

May your reign never cease, Stalk Ashley, and I cannot wait to hear more from you. 

4.4 out of 5 stars.