‘Tis the season of Normani. The R&B/pop star has returned with her brand new single titled “Motivation.” The upbeat track was co-written by Ariana Grande, Ilya (Jennifer Lopez), Max Martin (The Weeknd) and Savan Kotecha (Usher).
“I’ma break you off, let me be your motivation / To stay and give it tonight / And, baby, turn around, let me give you innovation / Hey, ’cause I do it so right,” Normani sings on the chorus.
“Motivation” is the lead single from Normani’s upcoming debut album that will release on Keep Cool/RCA Records. “It was the first opportunity that I had to have fun,” she told Rolling Stone. I think that people have been waiting for me to have fun and I’ve had so many records like ‘Waves’ and ‘Love Lies’ and Sam [Smith’s ‘Dancing With a Stranger’], which are a little bit more R&B smooth sailing.”
In addition to the single release, Normani also shared the official music video. The dance-heavy visual was co-directed by Dave Meyers and Daniel Russell. It opens with a young Normani sitting in her grandmother’s living room watching BET’s 106 & Park and dreaming about what it would be like to to be a star like some of her idols.
Normani pays homage to some popular R&B music videos including Ciara’s “1, 2 Step,” Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love,” Chris Brown’s “Yo,” Omarion’s “Touch” and a few others — you’ll just have to watch to see what other videos you can pick out.
“Y’all know I love the early 2000’s,” Normani wrote in an Instagram post.
Watch Normani’s “Motivation” video below.