IFULKI – “Moment”

We're constantly being encouraged to be the main character. Seize the moment. Own the room. Become the best version of ourselves. It's an exhausting amount of self-actualization to accomplish before lunch, especially when you consider we're all supposed to be doing it simultaneously. At this rate, the world is going to run out of spotlights. Fortunately, London-based trio IFULKI have arrived with “Moment,” a gloriously funky reminder that you can have yours without making everyone else's smaller. Which sounds like a far more appealing arrangement, especially if it comes with a bassline this good.

I love the idea that a song about claiming your moment comes from three musicians whose backgrounds and musical traditions are so different, yet whose chemistry depends on making room for one another. Vocalist Queen Kaltoum grew up in Italy with Moroccan heritage, bassist and synth player Charlie Flynn brings Irish and Ghanaian roots, and drummer and percussionist Ayman Sinada comes from a Sudanese background. Together, they've built a sound that draws from Gnawa music, jazz-funk, soul, and electronic production, with each influence contributing to the conversation. On “Moment,” the bass practically introduces itself before anyone else gets a word in, the drums keep everything moving, and Kaltoum's voice brings the whole affair together. Everyone gets their turn. Nobody needs to steal the microphone.

Kaltoum describes “Moment” as an encouragement to recognize opportunities, stand up for yourself, and refuse to let anyone diminish your ambitions. But there's an equally important emphasis on the people who help you get there. That's what makes the song more interesting than another motivational anthem demanding we manifest our destiny on command. The music has the looseness of musicians genuinely enjoying one another's company, with live percussion, buoyant keys, and vocal harmonies giving the arrangement plenty of personality. It's confident without becoming competitive, and uplifting without sounding like it was written for a corporate retreat. You can dance to it without being asked to identify three areas for personal improvement.

“Moment” arrives ahead of IFULKI's forthcoming EP, Something Greater, due December 4 via SOURCE / [PIAS]. The title feels appropriate for a group whose whole musical identity depends on the possibilities that emerge when different people bring their experiences into the same room. There's plenty of ambition in this song, and plenty of joy in hearing it realized collectively. Maybe that's the part our culture keeps getting wrong about having a moment. We spend so much time trying to make ourselves the center of attention that we forget how good it feels when everyone around us is having a great time, too. IFULKI have figured that out. And judging by this groove, they're happy to share.