Phony Ppl are back. The genre-bending band has released “Nowhere But Up,” their first new music release since “On My Shit” featuring Joey Bada$$ in 2020.
The song’s title comes from a tour launched in the fall of 2021. It arrives with a supporting music video, directed by Erik Rojas.
“Nowhere But Up” is a considerably catchy song, finding Phony Ppl bringing back the funk with majestic keyboard action and brilliant guitar work. On the lyric tip, the group’s vocalist Elbee Thrie feels no sympathy for a conning past lover who tries to find their way back into his life. In short, he’s good, love.
Of the new single, Thrie says, “’Nowhere But Up’ is exactly where Phony Ppl’s is headed; and for the song.. this colorful demonstration of a sexy sweaty seductive chase, forces your body to move and groove sooo good, that you might just have to run-it-back when it ends!”
“Nowhere But Up” is the third single Phony Ppl has shared ahead of their forthcoming studio album, Euphonyous, which arrives this fall.
The LP’s first single, “Fkn Around,” featuring Megan Thee Stallion, dropped in January 2020. It eventually entered the top ten of Billboard’s Adult R&B Airplay chart, a first for the five-person collective.
In a May 2020 interview with Rated R&B, Thrie shared his reaction to achieving this inaugural feat.
“We had no clue that [this song] was going to be something that the radio would be interested in or something that would be top 10 worthy on Billboard charts. It’s a blessing, honestly,” Thrie shared.
As mentioned above, Phony Ppl issued the Joey Bada$$-assisted “On My Shit” in November 2020. They accompanied the song with a wondrous music video.
Of Euphonyous, the follow-up to 2018’s mō’zā-ik, Maffyuu said to Rated R&B, “I know jumping into this project one thing that we definitely wanted to zero in on was more movement from top to bottom.”
He continued, “Not all the tracks are going to be just straight fall on the floor and shake your butt stuff, but we wanted to definitely tap into the more groovy side that we all possess. We’ve been creating songs with that in mind to get people moving and to balance the catalog out.”
Leading up to their new work, Phony Ppl collaborated with VanJess for their Homegrown project.
On Oct. 8, Phony Ppl will perform at the One MusicFest in Atlanta, Georgia. Afterward, they’ll play several shows in major cities, including Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles, to name a few. Get more information on their upcoming concerts here.
Listen to Phony Ppl’s new single “Nowhere But Up” below.
