It was quiet around Alexander O’Connor aka Rex Orange County for a long time. That changes with “Who Cares?” The Brit, who was so successful with “Pony”, has celebrities Benny Sings and Tyler, The Creator in tow.
Berlin – Corona also caught Rex Orange County cold. In spring 2020, the Englishman Alexander O’Connor was on tour with his indie pop project, which was ultimately thwarted by the pandemic.
Only shortly before that he had presented the successful record “Pony” (5th place in the UK charts, even 3rd place in the USA). “Apricot Princess” (2017) also aroused curiosity about the still very young artist with a playful pop-jazz approach.
New album is coming
The involuntarily long creative break is now coming to an end with the 11-track album “Who Cares?”. American rapper and producer Tyler, The Creator is considered one of Rex Orange County’s earliest supporters – the song “Open A Window” not only testifies to this connection, but also marks the first collaboration between the two since Tyler’s album “Flower Boy”.
The music video for the song “Keep It Up” takes place in Amsterdam – no coincidence, because large parts of the album by Rex Orange County were created in the Dutch metropolis, in productive sessions with Dutch pop star Benny Sings. The refrain says: “Keep it up and go on, you are only holding out for what you want” (roughly: keep it up, you can only endure what you want).
If you roll your eyes at the directness of the lyrics – it’s your own fault. Packed in jazzy, driving pop sounds, O’Connor (23) delivers a song that puts you in a good mood and keeps you going. Probably not so wrong in times of crisis and war. dpa
