Afroman makes a welcome return with some new blood on HEwas’ single “Wholething.” In just the span of two singles, HEwas has already become a talent worth paying attention to, first with his poppy synth track “Lemon” but he’s already hit a whole new level of refinement, no doubt thanks to his collaboration with a seasoned veteran like Afroman. It’s funny that this track was released in December because it has the energy of a summertime radio jam that should be played loud at a pool party.

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The song follows the larger than life characters of HEwas and Afroman lamenting that their casual hookups are suddenly displaying signs of wanting to get a little more serious. There’s no doubt going to be a large collection of guys especially who will find a way to relate to it, which is funny given how HEwas’ character nearly explicitly states that he’s the real problem, asking not even for sex, but to just be held which is a wildly intimate action within itself. Afroman operates on a whole different extreme, singing about his infidelity on his wife which is getting more and more serious as his mistress now threatens to expose him. It’s some very distinct perspectives that feel complimentary but also like warnings to others who continue to mess around thinking there are no consequences. The differences between the two are even in the pairs vocal performance HEwas aiming for a higher pitched pop standard voice that perfectly differentiates from Afromans now iconic baritone.

It’s wildly re-listenable and the hook and riffs are so undeniably catchy you’ll find yourself humming it a lot to yourself which is always the gold seal of any song. It’ll also be fun to unpack different interpretations to the song from various perspectives. The men in this song are full of contradictory statements and actions, that one can’t help but wonder what the women in their lives make of their screw ups. It reminds me of Gotye’s “Somebody I Used to Know” in that we only have as much context as the narrator gives us, but you just know the other side isn’t pretty. Sometimes the synths, pops, and clicks can overpower the vocals especially that of HEwas since he’s operating at a high octave but it’s not anything that’ll probably be noticeable to the casual listener.

I have no doubt that this song will quickly establish HEwas as a cult hit on the rise no doubt like Afroman once was before hitting his massive success with “Because I Got High”, which, yes, it does get name dropped in the song and it’s a really good name drop too.It’s funny that this song is all about how you don’t want to get serious with a side piece, especially since we’re all so separated and casual dating has obviously been on a decline but hookups have been on the rise that I’m sure those stuck in a one sided casual relationship will no doubt find the listening experience to be a deeply cathartic one.

John McCall