Chicago’s musical output in the last few years has been legendary. From Glo Gang to SaveMoney, different camps have been defining genres and propelling artists from local favourites to chart-topping stars. The latest release from the windy city comes from poet and singer Jamila Woods with her solo debut Heavn.

Jamila Woods has been a part of the Chicago music scene for years. After getting a BA in African Studies and Theatre from Brown University, she published her first book of poetry in 2012. That same year she released her first album as half of M&O (fka Milo & Otis), titled The Joy, that featured a young Donnie Trumpet and Chance the Rapper.

Woods’ debut finds her working with a who’s-who of Chicago artists. Chance the Rapper, Donnie Trumpet, Saba, Lorine Chia, and Noname all appear on the album, and production comes from a variety of artists including Nate Fox and Peter Cottontale (of the Social Experiment), oddCouple, Kweku Collins, and Carter Lang. The album is a beautiful, soulful project that Woods describes as being about “black girlhood, about Chicago, about the people we miss who have gone on to prepare a place for us somewhere else, about the city/world we aspire to live in”. A mixture of R&B, soul, jazz, and hip hop come together to form one of the nicest-sounding albums of the year.

Each song on Heavn has a specific message and purpose that make Woods a strong voice in black music’s current political landscape. Title track “Heavn” interpolates the lyrics to the Cure’s “Just Like Heaven” into a song about love and family; the Chance the Rapper-assisted “LSD” is an ode to Chicago’s Lake Shore Drive (rather than the drug usually associated with Chance); and early single “Blk Girl Soldier” is a powerful statement of black femininity.

Heavn comes following Woods’ recent signing with Closed Sessions, a Chicago label that includes rapper Kweku Collins and producers oddCouple and Boathouse. She’s been gaining a steady reputation for her excellent features, including work with Saba, Macklemore, and two spots on Donnie Trumpet and the Social Experiment’s Surf, including her starmaking chorus on “Sunday Candy”.

Stream Heavn below, via Soundcloud.