“Isolation” is one of two studio albums made by singer and songwriter Karly-Marina Loaiza, also known by her stage name Kali Uchis. Being her debut album, it includes many features from other famous artists such as Tyler The Creator, Steve Lacy, BIA, and more.

Uchis makes great music in the genres of r&b, neo soul, and hip hop in her three albums across her discography. Her albums include lyrics in both English and Spanish, but “Isolation” includes less Spanish than her other projects.

“Isolation” was released on April 6, 2018 and was previously supported with the singles “Dead To Me,” “Tyrant,” “Nuestro Planeta,” “After The Storm,” and “Just A Stranger.” The album includes many genres of music with the main ones being r&b, hip hop, funk, and neo soul.

The intro “Body Language” starts off with a vibrant tone and includes lyrics that talk about the idea of setting up a relationship with someone and getting to know them.

“Miami” features BIA and shows female empowerment through the two artists making money in Miami, hence the name. This song had some motivation to it, as her relatives did not believe she would gain fame through her music.

The album’s third song “Just A Stranger” is Uchis’ second collaboration with Steve Lacy, and has bass guitar work from Lacy and drums from Romil Hemnani. Both producers did a great job giving this song an upbeat tone to match its lyrics of Uchis portraying herself as a gold-digger. She talks about this character as a stronger figure who does not care about much.

“Flight 22” talks about a man who Uchis adores and would love no matter what. The title is a reference to Piedmont Airlines Flight 22, which crashed in 1967. She is fine with going down on this flight because she is with the man she loves.

In the fifth song, “Your Teeth In My Neck,” talks about how she is tired of the music industry appropriating her work.

Featuring Jorja Smith, the song “Tyrant” is said to be a “post apocalyptic love song” talking about how love can be an escape from reality.

Track seven, “Dead To Me,” is the most famous song on the album and has a large use of drums and keyboards to emphasize the majestic beat. The song shows how Kali wants to leave and stop talking to someone who is seemingly obsessed with her.

“Nuestro Planeta” takes a turn with the entire song being in Spanish rather than English like the rest of the album. This song shows the reggaeton genre to match with the feature Reykon.

“In My Dreams” is the eighth song, and the keyboard plays a huge role in setting the tone of this song as upbeat and jolly. While Uchis lived in Colombia with her father, she was exposed to lots of criminal activity and violence. The song shows how she wished for a better life and now lives a dream life in California.

In between the two interludes, “Gotta Get Up” and “Coming Home,” is the song “Tomorrow.” “Tomorrow” is an uplifting and soulful song where Uchis encourages listeners to follow their hearts.

The 13th track “After The Storm,” featuring Tyler The Creator, shows a softer and dreamy tone throughout the song. Uchis shows strength and also has references to the album “Flower Boy” by Tyler The Creator. Tyler’s feature in this song includes one of these references with him saying “I’m the hottest flower boy on the scene.”

“Feel Like A Fool” has Uchis finding out she was cheated on by her man but she is unable to set herself free from him anyhow.

The final track “Killer” is another slow sounding song which she wrote before this album’s release, being written when she was 17.

“Isolation” is a great hip hop album which I would give a personal rating of 93/100, while other sources such as Metacritic give the album a rating of 87/100. Out of all 13 songs, my favorite song is “In My Dreams” because of how uplifting it can be. The entire album is great for anyone who loves calm and peaceful music, along with the uplifting spirit of the album.