Reese Antoinette Explores the Sonic Nuances of Love in "What Is Love"

Reese Antoinette is enamored with love. The Afro-Caribbean songstress and actress goes on a reggae-infused quest to find out what love means and where it manifests in her latest single, "What is Love."

She chooses the world as a backdrop in her search. In the song, Antoinette goes on a journey with her lover and explores the tenderness and security that comes from deep affection toward someone.

"I could fly for hours just to get to where we stay/First class seat overlooking San Francisco Bay/We ain't go no limit what we pay, pay, pay, pay/Turks and Caicos, Mexico, Mykonos to Montego/Lay up on my shoulder as we fly watch the world below as the time passes by," she sings.

The Jamaican-Cuban beauty has always had a penchant for feeling the warmth of intimacy and staunchly refuses to put an end to the voyage of finding it. Whether it's self-love, romantic, or familial, Reese is on a lifelong mission.

"Love is complicated," she tells New Times over the phone from New York City. "And I feel like generally it's so easy to give up on love. That's why I think that 'What is Love' is the beginning of a larger conversation about what love is. I'm not giving up on love; I've never given up on love."

"It really is this exploration about love, which is why I think 'What is Love' is a great beginning because it's asking the question," she continues. "One of my favorite Bob Marley songs is 'Is This Love.' And there are so many ways to explore love, and that's what I'm interested in. Right now, it's really what it means to be in love with myself and someone else."

Amid the sweet message of the song, Antoinette's smooth honey-dipped voice cascades over Jamaican-influenced beats. The critically acclaimed producer Dale Dizzle Virgo (Gyptian, Rihanna, Cecile, Amy Winehouse, Sean Kingston, Drake, and Florence & the Machine) is responsible for the track's dreamy feel. The song is being distributed by the late Bob Marley's label, Tuff Gong International.

Reese also finds inspiration in the 305. She credits Miami's massive Caribbean community as a conduit for her sonic modus operandi. "Miami is my second home at this point because I've found such deep connections with the city's cultural roots, which is really powerful, and the people, too, are from all over," she adds.

The singer first started making music ten years ago. Back then, she opened up for Movado and Lady Saw (née Marion Hall) and performed on stages all over Brooklyn and at Reggae Sumfest in Jamaica. In addition to singing, Antoinette recently graduated from New York University's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts with an MFA in acting and from the British American Drama Academy at Oxford University.

It's 8:30 p.m., and it's pouring outside. Antoinette is getting ready to shoot a movie in New York. As the conversation ends, it causes her to reflect on her identity, culture, and where she wants to take her music. She hopes to mix reggaeton with reggae someday and keep finding herself and love through an R&B lens.

"Through R&B, I am exploring the different parts of myself, which will include reggaeton and reggae. A lot of my music is inspired by the islands and based on who I am," she says. "There are so many songs that are of the world that also explore who I am."

"In 'What is Love,' I talk a lot about elements: water, sand, the sun. Love is the connection to the world around you and the person you're with," she concludes. "Love can be simple, and it can be extravagant."