Common reflects on the past 25 years of hip-hop – as well as his own 1994 classic “I Used to Love H.E.R.” – on the rapper’s new single “HER Love.” The track features guest appearances by Daniel Caesar and Dwele and boasts an unreleased beat by the late J. Dilla.
Common also dropped a Savanah Leaf-directed visual for the song, which is the rapper’s latest ode to “Hip-Hop in its Essence is Real.” On the track, Common name-checks artists like Meek Mill, Nipsey Hussle, Cardi B, 2 Chainz and many more.
“You gave me a voice in this world / But it’s been hard to choose another girl / They trip when you mumble, they trip when you sing / But you gave us a chance to dream,” Common sings to H.E.R.
“In Young Thug’s, you see a future / You recognize Lil Uzi ain’t here to shoot ya / At 21, you knew I was Savage / But you said ‘Common, you will never be average.”
“HER Love” is the latest single of Common’s new LP dubbed Let Love Have the Last Word, which shares its title with the memoir the rapper released in May. The album is Common’s first since 2016’s Black America Again.
“I love music so much. And on Let Love, this recommitting, rebirth and ‘re love,’ if that’s a word, just came to fruition,” Common said in a statement. “Music has always been the genesis of my creative life and it feels more than fulfilling, more than wonderful, and a joy that is hard to wrap up, to be giving my whole self to it again.”