After a successful few years releasing LPs Remember Your North Star and Ten Fold, New York polymath Yaya Bey returns with a soca-infused single. Poised and ready for a joyful steel drum arrangement, 'merlot and grigio' is a welcome slice of sunshine after a long and gruelling winter. Having reflected on her work to date and her experience of playing it live, she explains: “I’ve been doing a lot of international touring and constantly in places where I’m the only Black person. When I was in France most recently I asked myself what it would look like to play to Black international audiences and that sort of got my wheels turning. My dad would always have at least one Reggae song on his albums. Our family is from Barbados and I continued that tradition with songs like ‘meet me in brooklyn.’ I decided I would dive even deeper with Soca and reached out to Father Philis whose music I’ve been really digging. This song feels like a dream come true. To dig deeper into my own roots and prioritize Black communities especially in the Caribbean.” Paving the way for more new music, 'merlot and grigio (feat. Father Philis)' feels like a celebratory and self-aware start to an exciting new chapter. -Holly Mullineaux