Single: Stay Away From The Water ft. Dominic Brown
Artist: Coke
Label: Studio60 Records, Dahlhouse Entertainment
Release Date: July 20th, 2017
Genre: R&B, Latin Rock
Written by: Airemese Smith
Produced by: FancyN
Length: 3:35

Stay Away From The Water is a song recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Coke featuring guest vocals from R&B singer Dominic Brown. The song serves as the follow up single to her top 5 hit, Now You See Me. Seeking to impact radio on July 21st, 2017 by Studio60 Records with additional promotion by Dahlhouse Entertainment, it comes just days after Coke confirmed the completion of her sophomore album, GOLD. Written solely by Airemese Smith, the production is handled by FancyN. Stay Away From The Water is a mid-tempo Latin-inspired song, consisting of Latin percussion, acoustic guitar lines and riffs that are heavily sampled from the 1999 hit single "Maria Maria" by American Latin rock band Santana. Serving a much more urban R&B sound than she ever has in a solo song, she trades her alternative sound for a sultry Dominic Brown appearance, the catchy single featuring deep sexy voices from both singers as sing-rap their way through the sinister song. Lyrically, Coke and Dominic Brown persuades someone under the influence to join them on the beach shore, in hopes that they'll drown and kill them.

On April 30th, news broke of arrests made at a Japanese airport involving Coke and Aikya Balan. Their personal assistants were found guilty of attempting to smuggle drugs into the strict country, trying to sneak in 2 full bottles of Adderrall with Coke's prescribed Lithium medication for her bipolar disorder. Despite the fact that only then assistants were found guilty after airport security conducted a private investigation, the media blamed Coke and began spreading rumors of an alleged pill addiction, a theory courtesy of "anonymous sources". Coke didn't even take the time out to deny such ridiculous tabloid gossip, her team refusing to comment on the situation at all. Stay Away From the water draws inspiration from the groundless controversy, mocking all speculation that questions if Coke is a functioning drug addict without actually dismissing the conversation. Whilst writing the song, the singer definitely did her research, using popular songs about bad trips as reference for the song's lyrics. The two tracks that had the biggest impact on the song include the iconic song often thought of as an ode to LSD, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" by The Beatles (which is referenced in the song) and also Jody Reynolds' all time classic, "Endless Sleep", the song that inspired Coke to personify herself as the sea, something she hadn't thought of on earlier demos of the song. Dominic Brown didn't become apart of the process until after the song was written, the two had plans to collaborate but they didn't come to fruition until Coke showed Dominic Brown the track.

Stay Away From The Water is a mid-tempo Latin-inspired song, that consists of Latin percussion and "slinky acoustic guitar lines. Written in the key of C minor, it has a tempo of 96-100 beats per minute in compound quadruple time. The song follows a chord progression of Cm–Fm–Cm, and Coke's and Dominic's vocals spanning from C4 to G5. Billboard editor Andrew Unterberger noted that the track has "a catchy groove" to it, deeming it a sure-fire hit. Okoth-Obbo described the lyrics as straddling the line between "suicidal and carnally amusing", the lyrics that advertise suicide as reckless fun accidentally giving the song a second meaning. He went on to praise both singers' controlled delivery, as well as implied that if it wasn't for the story behind it, the song could be taken in many different ways by listeners.


Coke
Dominic Brown
Both

Let's make it something worth resenting
That rabbit hole has gotta be your favorite clinic
That's my kinda prison, oh yes
It's your birthday but your mind's still pending
Get your licks in, the situation's real sticky
It gets tricky down by the bay
That pill can carry you away
But can it carry all of your deadweight?

Give me all you got
Or give it all you got not tuh
Give me all you got
All in, ain't talking poker
If you're not
Stay away from the wa-ta-ta-tuh

Let's make it something worth regretting
Ima end ya but it's better if you let me
Lightweight rolling heavy, aint the first
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds and the matching fur
Today's the perfect day to splurge, get it how you living
Step a little closer, baby, how ya feeling?
My shore's a little cold but my hold is warmer
I'm not what you think, are you shy with transformers or are you Shia with Transformers?

Give me all you got
Or give it all you got not tuh
Give me all you got
All in, ain't talking poker
If you're not
Stay away from the wa-ta-ta-tuh

Stay away from me
Nothing's what it seems
The secret you can't keep
An astral projection of what you feel down deep
My waves crash
You get a little dizzy
Your world is spinning
Your world is spinning

Let's make it something worth repenting
Can't live a life without facing consequences
Karma's a bitch but girl, I'm relentless
High's right, stronger than the wind is
That's how you lose all direction, you should just take directions from me
Before you come down, come on down by the beach
Now you see me, the situation's real sticky (real sticky)
It gets tricky down by the bay
Give me all you got
Or give it all you got to walk away
You wanna know my aim, I shouldn't even have to say
Connect the dots, no polka!

Give me all you got
Or give it all you got not tuh
Give me all you got
All in, ain't talking poker
If you're not
Stay away from the wa-ta-ta-tuh

All you got
Give me all you got
Or stay away from the fucking water!

Album: GOLD
Song: HOLES
Track: 11
Artist: Coke
Genre: PBR&B, Alt-Pop, Electro-R&B
Label: Tric-Jam, Studio60 Records
Written by: Airemese Nicole Smith
Produced by: inZane, FancyN
Length: 8:50

HOLES is a song by singer-songwriter Airemese Nicole Smith, better known as Coke of Rum & Coke. Written by Smith and produced by inZane with the help of FancyN, the song is a PBR&B track with elements of both Alternative Pop and Electronic R&B in it's entirety of eight minutes and fifty seconds. The extensive song is better described as 2 different songs in one.

The first half of the track is a whopping five minutes on it's own. Though it has a dark pop essence, it is an airy experience: dreamy synths, bubbly harps, subtle xylophones, waning ticking and a thumping bass all creating a sound that could easily be described as what one might hear when arriving to the gates of trap heaven. While Coke's heartbreaking voice dressed up with layers of soft falsettos only add to the angelic feel, the production is juxtaposed with lyrics about Coke trying to write her way out of depression in the midst of a demanding career and an unplanned pregnancy. She compares her depression to a hole where some days she can feel herself falling endlessly and other days she stands up and realizes it's not as deep as she thought. Either way, everyday she is stuck in that whole with no real escape but music. With a literal clash of thunder, the first half of the song fades into much darker territory. A minimalistic harp leads the way, the production being less instrumental and much more electronic this time around. There's a blatant Trip Hop influence that accompanies Coke as she sing-raps about yet again choosing her career over everything, including her unborn child. Continuing the theme of trying to write her way out of depression, she vows to instead use the talent to find her true self, something she doesn't feel she ever got to do due to being put on mood-altering medication at such an early age. When she's not picking herself apart, she's criticizing all of her surroundings, including her own audience. Despite having the darker sound of the 2 songs in 1, it reveals itself as the more hopeful, Coke managing to write herself out of hiding from herself. "It's good, it's gold", she sings, possibly referencing that everything is going to be okay.



I could try
I could fight it
I could lie
Could stay silent
I never have the time, only ever get around to writing
Words come out just fine, but the solution is hiding

Some days I look up and see locomotion
A blurring open, out of focus
I try not to focus on the fact that I'm stuck here
Can't help but notice my life's up in the air
Count to 3
Try to breathe
Something's got a hold on me
You long to drain my eyes
Soothe my soul
I'm too busy

Digging these holes
Letting go, oh
Hoping to grow
But I only fall deep
Digging these holes
Letting go, oh
Hoping to grow
But I only fall deep

Could catch them up
Pretend my mind isn't made up
Maybe you'd catch some luck
Put it all on hold just because
If it all boils down to resentment
I'd rather the bitch that's used to it
Spare us both the indulgences
Carry so much dead weight, I chauffeur it
Not much to show for it
No point in dragging you

Some days I look up and see the sun
This hole is infinite as long as I sit in it
With shaken legs and wary arms
I pull my weight but today, I won't let it drain me
Don't wanna jinx it
Hell, I'm probably dreaming
But I got a hold on me
You long to tear my flesh
Share my body
But I'm too busy

Digging these holes
Letting go, oh
Hoping to grow
But I only fall deep
Digging these holes
Letting go, oh
Hoping to grow
But I only fall deep

Today makes 2
Some days I think of you
All that is, all that could be
You aren't the missing peice
Tonight makes a sea
A river that outruns me
Let it pool at my feet
We'll wade

Digging these holes
Letting go, oh
Hoping to grow
But I only fall deep
Digging these holes
Letting go, oh
Hoping to grow
But I only fall deep

Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Oh
Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Oh



My pen is like a gilded shovel
Write to dig up my soul without moving a muscle
The difference it makes inside is so subtle
But when it drops, I'll need to push back on the push back with a whole rebuttal
Force myself to take stand for my mistakes while my soul crumbles away
For what it's worth, it's never worth the trouble, babe
I'm running from myself and my shadow loves the chase
Pretend all bets are off in this race
I'm the broken kind of brave and that's brave
If I do say so myself, and I say
If you ask me, I'll say

Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
It's good
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
It's gold
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
It's good
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
All gold

When they see me they see Rum, yeah, I noticed
No time to rethink what I want, losing focus
Way too far down this road, path back's broken
Slaved myself for 5 whole years, I just don't show it
Bet if I started out broke and alone, my name alone would be more potent
Did it all my way but I guess that's not important
Never forget, this is my wave
They ride my coattails while I wade
Carry the whole world on my back
I don't have room to fall flat
Hate to be a downer but I'm sinking
Been on downers since I was thirteen
Last year, I cold-called me
Realized inside, there was nothing
Replaced my meds with Molly
Do I feel at all? Hardly
But I can feel this beat and that's something
A start, a beginning
This time I'll start up with just me, learned my lesson
Scared to lose me
They never had me
Tonight, I'll fall deep
But I'll fall deep as me
If you ask me

Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
It's good
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
It's gold
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
It's good
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
All gold

Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Oh
Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Letting go, oh
Oh

So where do my euthymic hobbies, interests and aspirations end and my manic ones begin?

That was the question that lingered in the back of my mind as my mother succeeded in pinning me against a wall and forcing medication down my throat. I had finally stopped fighting because my mom had tears in her eyes. She doesn't cry but she could never help it in moments like this. I watched as she fought through her tearing eyes and cracking voice just to reprimand me: "You're not in your right mind...How do you seriously think you're okay?...Don't fucking fight me!.."
That's the worst part about the episodes: you don't realize you're having one until after the fact. In that moment, I had felt like I was dragged into an asylum and strapped down. "You're the crazy ones!" I'd cry, pleading my case of sanity. But I was 'tranquilized' anyway. It always felt like this for me, my mind had been playing these mind games since before I could remember.

I am not my disorder. I've been telling myself that since I was a pre-teen so it must be true, right? The true me was simple, the true me was natural. I was like water but I was cursed and muddied by a Bipolar Mood Disorder. The meds were supposed to "filter out" the imperfections (or at least that's what I hoped) but they only ever diluted the solution. If you're reading this, you probably know well from my songwriting that I love to get carried away with metaphors, so let me explain. The "solution" is me. Everything I have felt, everything I can feel, all of it was scientifically diluted by mood-altering drugs.

The meds weren't a cure, they were a symptom reliever. Their sole purpose was to weaken my mood swings and I was thankful for that when desperately gulping them down during a depressive episode but completely resented them when forced to take them during a manic episode. Depression, for lack of better words, makes me want to roll over and die. Mania does the exact opposite: I want to live, I want to get up, I want to accomplish something NOW. I want to fuck, I want to fight, I want to feel...how can you deny me the right to feel? To take pills that stop you from feeling means just that: to take pills that stop you from feeling. My meds do not know where my genuine happiness ends and my manic pleasure begins, so it just sucks it all away from me. Greedy bitch.



So where do "I" end and my disorder begin?

I have gone through hell and back for the last year trying to figure that out. I had planned to write my debut album all about me but I was genuinely stomped because I didn't know me. That's why when I locked myself in the studio to record and write Dans Ta Tête, I didn't realize it was a manic episode. I thought it was a blessing, that I was just suddenly "inspired" and I had finally realized who I was. I wrote that album in 2 days and god, I loved it. Seriously, I would've fucked that album if given the anatomical chance. Every lyric, every melody, every note: it was all so euphoric to me. I was so excited and everyone else was too...until 2 days turned into 5 and 5 days turned into a full week. Someone would try to talk to me and I'd yell at them for being a distraction. Someone would try to pull me away and I'd immediately swing on them. This is why my mom had to pin me down, shove meds in my face and drag me out the studio. Sooner or later I would've crashed and have been sent into either an intense depressive episode or an all-out mental breakdown. If it wasn't for her, that week could've very well been my last.

What that experience had given me was fear of my love for music, something I'd never had before. But it had also left me with the strangest aftertaste...it had given me an idea of what real passion feels like and that scared me the most. Why? Well because now I couldn't ignore how numb my medication leaves me. Just thinking about that intense mania made me feel so dead inside.

Just when I started feeling my emptiest, I started actually losing things. I lost trust in my medication. I lost control of my album release. I had lost all interest in my career. I ran off with my husband and lost all the faith my team and fans held in me. I returned only to realize I had lost a lot of money and traction thanks to my impulsivity. And just for that extremely assertive cherry on top, I lost my father.

So where does my thank you letter end and my album begin?

Well, this one I can actually give a straight answer: Right here. I could go on and on about how dark things got for me and how it's still uncertain if I truly made it out this hellhole. In fact, I did. I poured my heart and soul into every lyric and every note on this album in hopes that the music would get a chance to speak for itself. So thank you for reading this letter but I have a golden tongue. If you think I'm great with words, just wait until you hear my sound.

Coke: Thank you so much, mama. Its so hard putting your soul into a song while still trying to make it relatable. The fact that any of thie resonates with you means so much to me.