Brett Gray, who plays Jamal on the Netflix series On My Block, dropped his first single ever today, and it’s called “Old Thing Back.” As the first track off his upcoming EP Easy Days, which comes out in August, it’s already got us feeling all the summer love vibes.
“It’s about a girl that you see again after you might have had a situation with her before,” he explains. “You see her again, and now you’re older, and she looks different and you look different, and you might want that old thing back.”
A sonic retelling of young love that never really faded away, “Old Thing Back” rocks with a definite old-school feel and boasts lyrics like, “We was only 13/Two pups that was thirsty (for love)/ Same time it’s a hurt piece (to know)/I had to let go the first thing I ever dreamed of” and “Too shy to fall in love again/Who knew I would ever love a friend .. And though it’s just a distant memory/ I hope that you’ll remember me.”
According to Brett, not only is his debut single inspired by a past relationship, but all of the songs on his upcoming EP are, as well. “[Old Thing Back is] also a reference to the sounds on my album,” he says. “It’s a reminder that this [song] is also bringing something else that is old back to this time period. It’s an ode to my love for music in juxtaposition with my love for this girl.”
Prior to releasing his first single, Brett was encouraged to take the leap into recording his own music last year after going into the studio with a friend — but he wasn’t all the way down for the idea at first.
“The thought of doing my own project was crazy to me,” he says. “Because it scared me so much, I was like, ‘I have to do it.’ I was like, what if an opportunity knocks, why limit myself to one thing if you have the ability to do stuff? I was like this is scary, and I don’t know how to do this, so let’s do it.”
And we’re so glad he did. Check out the lyric video below, and let us know if you’re feelin’ it as much as we are.
