Manny “LLManny” Buckner, 29, released the uptempo Latin-infused track, “Love Come Down (Remix)” on Feb. 14. Both the original and remix feature local vocal powerhouses who helped craft a cohesive, soulful masterpiece. Brianna “Be.Be” Brown is on the original and Tonina Saputo, bassist, and vocalist is on the remix.
“The person I was dating at the time influenced me to finish the song because we had a lot of sexual chemistry that we hadn’t acted on,” Buckner said. “I was like ‘hmm, you don’t know what you’re getting yourself into,’ so I talked about it in the song, but I wanted it to still be tasteful.”
Producing the song came relatively easy for Stacey Reynolds, better known as ‘VolumeSpeaks,’ who incorporated Buckner’s influences with her own personal inspirations.
“She’s a big fan of Selena, that’s where the Latin feel comes from, but I had also been very inspired by electric and house music at the time,” Reynolds said. “I combined both sounds together and it created a really dope track.”
Buckner released “Love Come Down,” and its remix in addition to “Pep Talk,” which will be on her upcoming album, “Drugs, Liquor & Perfume,” which drops in May. She took the feeling of boredom from engaging in mundane routines during the quarantine and turned it into motivation for new content.
“Probably like the first two and a half weeks of quarantine, I was in a rut. I’d wake up, watch tv, go to sleep, do it all over again,” Buckner said. “I revisited some old beats I had in my inbox and I used them as ways to cope and develop new sounds.”
The album’s theme comes from Buckner identifying the coping mechanisms she’s noticed some people have adopted during these unparalleled pandemic times.
“Drug users have a temporary, false sense of confidence when they indulge in whatever their poison is,” Buckner said. “Some people have to take a couple shots, so they can feel themselves. Others are interested in feeling good and looking good, that’s where the perfumecomes into play.”
Nicknamed the Empress of Hip-Hop Soul for her graceful, commanding presence, she has been making music for more than five years, but she began taking it more seriously with her 2017 extended play release,“Esta Fuego.” She followed up with “Soul Glo,” in 2018, and has continued to make music.
“I felt like then, at the age of 27, I knew enough about myself to put out a positive message to the world rather than just about what’s trending,” Buckner said.
Growing up, Buckner listened to a lot of Missy Elliott and Lauryn Hill, seeing how they carried themselves as Black, empowered womenwho didn’t have to be overly sexy resulted in her having the same approach in her artistry.
“I’m going to be my authentic self to the fullest, everybody may not like it, but you will respect me,” Buckner said.
Buckner is a 2009 graduate of Central Visual and Performing Arts High School.
LLManny’s music is available on all streaming platforms. Find out more at https://llmanny.com/home.