Features : Dontius brings out the soul of R&B with new track “Inside You Live”

Dontius has a voice born for R&B, and with his new song “Inside You Live,” he has turned to that genre from his previous hip-hop tracks.

“This song that I’m about to drop is more so R&B, way R&B,” he said. “It’s my first R&B song where I went really slow with vocals.”

“Inside You Live,” dropping October 8, has a seesaw beat and a playful melody, and Dontius’ power vocals put heat and feeling into a song that is about sex and soul.

“It’s about — I don’t want to say falling in love — but basically being inside of a woman, not just sex, but also being inside her spiritually, being inside her mentally, being inside her physically. I am her now, me and you are one. It’s like marriage.”

I’m inside you, doin’ what’s natural 
This feeling was overdue
I’m kissing on your back your neck your feet 
I’m completely inside you 
Our bodies are souls in tune 

The “live” in the title is live, as in a live performance, and, in the way the song was produced, it is, he said, a kind of testimony to performing live.

RZA, from the Wu-Tang Clan, Dontius’ cousin, produced the music and was playing it one day when Dontius went to the studio.

“He was playing it, live in the studio, and I was singing it, just me and him. I had a drink of wine, and the next thing you know, I just felt comfortable on the mic. The beat was playing, the melody was flowing on its own and whatever came out came out.”

Another group of people was also in the studio, and they are in the background cheering, exclaiming and clapping.

“It sounded good in the audio, sounded good to the song, so we left it. It sounded really good. I’m happy about this song. It’s R&B and it’s soul — a lot of soul.”

The music video will be out soon after the track is released.

Dontius has been recording music since 2016, when he submitted music to RZA. His first big song was “Love You Down” on the EP The Fourteenth when he was with 36 Chambers, with whom he is still associated. Another was “Queen,” in 2020.

The woman in the video for that song, for whom the song was dedicated, is now his wife.

“We’ve been married for a year,” he said.

That song, with “Inside You Live,” will be on his next project, which is in the works.

Most of his music so far has been hip-hop, but he says it will be more R&B and soul going forward, though he loves hip-hop.

“Lyrically is why I love hip-hop so much, but I’m more of a melody-vocal guy.”

This year, with “Inside You Live,” Dontius is refreshing his career. Since 2020, most of his output has been on Instagram, but he is back to recording.

“I took a lot of time to make sure that my sound was correct,” he said.

Recording is the career he wants right now, moving eventually into live performances, and R&B, with his strong, soulful voice, is his vehicle.

“R&B is more my cup of tea,” he said. “It’s more for my soul, and I’m just here to follow my soul. Anywhere my soul goes, I go, and R&B takes the soul to that destination.”

“Inside You Live” is a rich listen, musically and lyrically, but even without getting involved with the lyrics, Dontius’ voice, by itself a beautiful instrument, evokes feeling and soul.

“I gotta tell you, man, it’s one of those songs that you can tell it’s not just about the music, you know? That’s what I like most about it. It’s not about the music, it’s about the soul.”

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