Frank Ocean has been feeling musically generous lately. After dealing with the digital uproar over the delay between his first and second albums for much of last year, Ocean may be rewarding fans by regularly releasing new music.
For the latest episodes of his blondeRadio show on Beats 1 Saturday (April 22), Ocean doubled up with two versions of the same song. The 29-year-old singer premiered “Lens,” and an alternate version, “Lens V2,” featuring Travis Scott.
Lens with frank ocean
— TRAVIS SCOTT (@trvisXX) April 23, 2017
A Twitter user noticed that Ocean’s cover art appears to be inspired by the painting “A Portrait of the Artist as a Shadow of His Former Self,” by Kerry James Marshall. As the Fader notes, Marshall’s painting was inspired by Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man.
frank ocean’s “Lens” cover / kerry james marshall’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Shadow of His Former pic.twitter.com/8iMBnWNpRZ
— Rina Updates (@rinank_) April 23, 2017
Marshall, a 61-year-old black artist born in Alabama and raised in South Central Los Angeles, depicts images of black culture to increase representation in the art world. “The hope was always to make sure these works found their way into museums so they could exist alongside everything else that people go into museums to look at,” he recently told NPR.
As for Ocean, fans are happy with the new offerings:
The subtle beat pickup in Lens by Frank Ocean is so well done.
— Kimberly T (@KayyThevv) April 23, 2017
Frank Ocean been releasing music more often and my heart can’t handle it
— N?oteric (@EricOhCrush) April 23, 2017
*frank ocean clears throat* pic.twitter.com/fINNwhHrCC
— babyboy (@FATHIOR3K) April 23, 2017
Listen to “Lens” and “Lens V2” below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrjluxMupus
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ni9LIdVGnZI