Souldier

Souldier is the second studio album by French singer-songwriter Jain. It was released on 24 August 2018 through Spookland, Columbia and Sony Music. Its release was preceded by the lead single "Alright". The album's title is a play-on-words between 'soldier' and 'soul'.

For the company, see Souldier (company).
Souldier
Studio album by
Jain
Released24 August 2018 (2018-08-24)
RecordedSpookland, Paris
Genre
Length31:12
LabelSpookland, Columbia, Sony Music
ProducerJain, Yodelice
Jain chronology
Zanaka
(2015)		 Souldier
(2018)
Singles from Souldier
  1. "Alright"
    Released: 25 May 2018
  2. "Oh Man"
    Released: 8 October 2018

The album debuted at number one in France and the French-speaking part of Switzerland (Romandie), number two in Switzerland and at number three in Wallonia.[2][3][4] Jain toured North America in support of the album, beginning in October 2018,[5] followed by dates in western Europe in November and December 2018.[6] The tour will continue in France in spring 2019.[7]

Release and promotion

The album's title, cover and track listing were announced on 29 June 2018 and it was made available for pre-order.[8]

On 25 May 2018, "Alright" was released as the album's lead single. A music video for the song was released on 25 June 2018.[9] The song achieved considerable success in France, reaching number one on the downloads chart and number six on the overall singles chart.[10][11] In December 2018, it was certified platinum in France for sales exceeding 200,000 copies.[12] "Alright" was also highly successful in Walloon, where it peaked at number two on the singles chart.[11]

On 8 October 2018, "Oh Man" was released as the album's second single.[13][14] A music video for the song was released on 21 December 2018. It was filmed at the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya.[15] The song peaked at number 23 in France and was certified gold for sales exceeding 100,000 copies.[16][12] In Walloon, it peaked at number 9, becoming Jain's third single to reach the top 10 in the region.[17]

Themes

The title track was inspired by the Orlando nightclub shooting,[18] while the song "Star" is about the position of young women in the music industry.[19]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
NME[18]

Reviewing the album for NME, Thomas Smith awarded the album four out of five stars and complimented its "diverse palette of influences" and "endearing moments", including "Inspecta", with Smith naming it "one of the most exhilarating songs of 2018" that is "basically just the Inspector Gadget theme tune given a trendy trap makeover".[18] Smith also acclaimed "Alright" for its "drum'n'bass with an Afrobeat flair". He also singled out "Dream", calling it "stripped-back Euro-tinged pop that's hinged on Jain's piercing vocals." In conclusion, he stated "Fortune favours the ones with love in their hearts, and Jain's Souldier shows bagfuls."[18]

Will Hermes, writing for Rolling Stone, noted Jain's "flow jump-cutting between pan-African dancehall chat and Europop chirp with matter-of-fact fluency — think M.I.A. as ingénue".[1] He called the album "another sly charmer, sung in English but stylistically polyglot".[1]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jain

No.TitleLength
1."On My Way"3:23
2."Flash (Pointe-Noire)"2:19
3."Alright"3:42
4."Oh Man"3:22
5."Inspecta"3:05
6."Dream"3:04
7."Star"3:01
8."Feel It"2:39
9."Abu Dhabi"2:51
10."Souldier"3:46
Total length:31:12
Japan bonus tracks[20]
No.TitleLength
11."Come"2:44
12."Makeba"4:11
Total length:38:26

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
France (SNEP)[27] 2× Platinum 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Hermes, Will (24 August 2018). "12 New Albums to Stream Now: Blood Orange, Ozuna and more". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  2. "Le Top de la semaine : Top Albums (Week 35)". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  3. "Swisscharts.com – Jain – Souldier". Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  4. "Ultratop.be – Jain – Souldier" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  5. Evans, Steph (27 June 2018). "JAIN releases music video for latest single "Alright"". Earmilk. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  6. "JAIN on Twitter". Retrieved 3 September 2018 – via Twitter.
  7. ""Souldier Tour" : Jain annonce une tournée des Zéniths pour 2019". chartsinfrance.net (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  8. "JAIN on Twitter". Retrieved 3 September 2018 – via Twitter.
  9. JAINVEVO (2018-06-25), Jain - Alright (Official Video), retrieved 2019-06-08
  10. "Le Top de la semaine : Top Singles Téléchargés (Week 34)" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  11. "Jain – Alright". lescharts.com (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  12. "Les Certifications". SNEP - Syndicat Nation de l'Edition Phonographique. 2013-11-01. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  13. Jain choisi "Oh Man" comme nouveau single (in French), retrieved 2019-02-10
  14. ""Oh Man" : Jain étincelle avec un nouveau single aux influences orientales". chartsinfrance.net. Retrieved 2019-02-10.
  15. Jain : découvrez son nouveau clip "Oh Man", tourné dans un musée (in French), retrieved 2019-02-10
  16. "lescharts.com - Jain - Oh Man". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  17. "ultratop.be - ULTRATOP BELGIAN CHARTS". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  18. Smith, Thomas (24 August 2018). "Jain – 'Souldier' album review". NME. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  19. Bureau, Eric (26 May 2018). "Musique : avec "Alright", Jain revient en guerrière" [Music: With "Alright", Jain returns as a warrior]. Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  20. "「ソウルジャー」- ジェイン". Sony Music Japan. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  21. "Ultratop.be – Jain – Souldier" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  22. "Les charts de la Suisse romande" (in French). lescharts.ch. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  23. "Rapports Annuels 2018". Ultratop. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  24. "Top de l'année Top Albums 2018" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  25. "Rapports Annuels 2019". Ultratop. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  26. "Top de l'année Top Albums 2019" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  27. "French album certifications – Jain – Souldier" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
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