Major Lazer – “Jessica” (Feat. Ezra Koenig)

Major Lazer - "Jessica"

Major Lazer – “Jessica” (Feat. Ezra Koenig)

Major Lazer - "Jessica"

We don’t get too many opportunities to hear Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig sing in a fake patois, and when one comes along, we’ve got to collectively grab it and cherish it. Koenig sings lead on “Jessica,” a new one-drop robo-reggae tune from Diplo’s Major Lazer project, and he switches from a pinched and sweet falsetto to a spoken Rasta mutter that probably had people in the studio busting up laughing. It’s the latest taste from Major Lazer’s sophomore album Free The Universe, finally due next month after a few pushbacks; we’ve already heard the luminous Amber Coffman collab “Get Free” and the thundering reggae-dubstep Flux Pavilion team-up “Jah No Partial.” And now you can hear a radio rip of “Jessica” below.

Free The Universe is out 4/15 on Secretly Canadian/Mad Decent/Downtown. And given that both Vampire Weekend and Major Lazer will be at SXSW this week, there’s at least an outside chance that we’ll hear this one live.

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