Victoria Monét has spent the last three years dancing her way into America’s hearts and onto the Grammy stage. Her debut studio album Jaguar II arrived with a brassy, horn-forward sound that nodded toward ’70s R&B. Now she’s stepping into her next era with Frequency of Love, her sophomore studio album out Oct. 2 via Lovett Music and RCA Records.
The 22-track record runs long, but it scoffs at the idea of a sophomore slump. Monét reunites with longtime producer D’Mile and builds a lush world of shimmering tracks, sweeping strings and pulsating synths. The album explores love in sexual, familial and supernatural contexts, anchored by R&B at its core.
Monét signals the sonic shift early. Lead single “Let Me,” which topped Adult R&B Airplay for three weeks, and “Reach Out,” built on Kaytranada-helmed production from 2024’s “Alright,” both feel more vibrant in the album’s full context. That sequencing shows intent: she and D’Mile built the record to play as a complete statement rather than a collection of singles.
Single’s Ranking, From Worst to Best
Billboard has ranked every track on Frequency of Love, from worst to best. The ranking is a subjective ordering of the album’s highlights, not a strict track-by-track recap of its sequencing.
The ranking covers eight songs, including interludes that function as connective tissue between full songs. Here’s how the list stacks up:
- “Care For Somebody (Interlude)” anchors the opening stretch with whimsical strings straight from The Sound of Music family tree.
- “Single” (feat. Bryson Tiller) is the weakest link, a summery hook that feels flat between an uncharacteristically plodding melody and dated production.
- “Dark Side of the Moon (Interlude)” goes intergalactic with a contemplative cut about waiting for a lover who has already clocked the inevitable.
- “I Want You (Interlude)” reimagines pieces of The Beatles’ “Michelle,” focusing on the “I love you” refrain and closing with a languid delivery.
- “All I Need” opens the album’s romance-focused section with regal keys and reverb-drenched horns, setting a sumptuous tone.
- “Money (Interlude)” brings a darker, femme fatale tone, assuming a character whose one true love is money.
- “Juicy” closes the romance-focused section with beguiling funk and contributions from D’Mile, Babyface and Michaël Brun.
- “Say Dat” delivers the first sliver of spice over a snap-laden beat, pushing the album several decades forward.
The Songs That Stand Out
Several tracks stand out as clear highlights. The SZA-featuring “See You In My Dreams” and the Bruno Mars duet “That’s Why I Love You” form a strong pairing, with Monét’s musings of love lost morphing into wedding-vow energy.
The album’s sequencing is deliberate. “Single” flows into “Reach Out,” and “See You In My Dreams” leads directly into “That’s Why I Love You.” The tracklist moves through love in all its forms, from romance to family to something approaching the supernatural.
Monét is also preparing for her own headlining trek. The Frequency of Love Tour will start at Raleigh’s Red Hat Amphitheater on Oct. 27, visiting major North American cities like New York, Toronto and Nashville before concluding at San Francisco’s Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on Dec. 17.
What The Ranking Shows
The ranking respects the sequencing rather than treating each track as a standalone hit. That approach makes sense for an album this ambitious, with so many moving parts.
The weakest tracks are dated rather than failed experiments. “Single” is the clearest example: it’s a solid song, but it doesn’t match the bar set by “Persuasion,” the last link-up between Monét and Tiller from his 2024 self-titled album.
The interludes work precisely because they serve the larger flow. “Care For Somebody (Interlude)” sets a whimsical tone. “Dark Side of the Moon (Interlude)” offers a moment of quiet reflection. “I Want You (Interlude)” reframes a classic Beatles hook. “Money (Interlude)” brings a haunting sound that Monét would do well to explore further.
The Album’s Place In R&B History
Frequency of Love is in constant conversation with both history and the zeitgeist. Monét grounds the album in the love-minded songs that came before it, from Brandy’s “Almost Doesn’t Count” to Dru Hill’s “In My Bed,” Joe’s “All the Things (Your Man Won’t Do)” and Bruno Lauzi’s “Ritornerai.”
She also fights against an era that sneers at earnest displays of love. The album mines Black music — literally everything from gospel to Motown to house — to explore the multitudes of love and its merits as not just a shared experience, but also as an approach to life.
The Ranking’s Bottom Line
The ranking is a useful tool for newcomers. It tells you where to start and where to skip. But the album deserves to be heard in sequence, because the sequencing is the point.
Monét has followed a Grammy-winning breakthrough with a record that doubles as a love letter to Black music. The songs are uneven, but the ambition is real.
- Frequency of Love is out Oct. 2 via Lovett Music and RCA Records.
- The Frequency of Love Tour starts Oct. 27 at Raleigh’s Red Hat Amphitheater.
- The album features collaborations with SZA, Bruno Mars, Bryson Tiller, Leon Thomas, Chlöe, Lucky Daye and her five-year-old daughter Hazel Monét.
- Lead single “Let Me” topped Adult R&B Airplay for three weeks.
- The tour visits cities including New York, Toronto and Nashville before concluding at San Francisco’s Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on Dec. 17.
Source material: “Victoria Monét’s ‘Frequency of Love’: All 22 Tracks Ranked,” Billboard.
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