Patrice Rushen’s “Remind Me” has been sampled, remade, refixed, covered, chopped, screwed, smothered, sliced, diced, peppered and capped (but never topped) so many times that it's kind of insane. Most famously, the 1982 hit was sampled by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five for their 1988 single “Fly Girl,” Mary J. Blige for her 1992 hit “You Remind Me” and Junior Mafia for their 1995 smash “I Need You Tonight.” But “fantasy soul” singer QUIÑ takes things a bit further. Instead of just giving us a bit of karaoke over the track, which in all honesty wouldn’t have hurt our feelings, she truly makes the song her own.
Instead of giving us the same infectious beat Rushen cooked up for the original, QUIÑ and producer Chuck Inglish give us an entirely different sound bed. Instead of the funk groove of the original, we’re given a light and airy production underscored by drum and bass. It’s a perfect backdrop for QUIÑ ’s vocals to shine and spotlight the timeless lyrics. QUIÑ’s lithe vocals do remind us of the breezy backgrounds of the original. To further sweeten the deal she also some lyrics from Rushen's other big hit “Forget Me Nots” on the bridge.
For the visual, the concept is that love makes the mundane magical. QUIÑ describe the video as, “a simple daydreamy reminiscent moment in time. It’s my little reminder of what falling in love feels like, featuring my best friends; my little sisters.” Directed by Dreamtiger, the clip features QUIÑ chilling at her apartment, literally floating because of the love in her life. There’s also a few hazy digital touches and subtle effects at play. While the artist rocks a few different looks in the clip, one constant is her braids, an obvious homage to Rushen's signature style.
“Remind Me” comes from QUIÑ’s upcoming project, LUCID, due sometime this September. It will follow up her last EP, DREAMGIRL, which was released around the same time last year. We’re happy to see the singer continuing her steady output of material and that it continues to sound this good.
