Title and concept
The album title is a backronym of Simbi, which is part of Simz's full first name, Simbiatu. Speaking on the album title to The Guardian , Little Simz commented: "I'm just very to myself and I didn't know how to really navigate that, especially coming in this industry where you're expected to have this extroverted persona all the time. I wanted to just let people know like, yo, I'm actually this way inclined […] When it comes to business and my work, I'm not shy at all, I don't hold back with that. I'm very serious and direct, but other stuff sometimes." [8] Thematically, Sometimes I Might Be Introvert is about Simz "being this introverted person that has all these crazy thoughts and ideas and theories in my head and not always feeling like I’m able to express it if it’s not through my art." [8]
Little Simz announced the album's title, cover art, release date, and preorder on 21 April 2021. [9] The first single, "Introvert", was released alongside its music video on 21 April 2021. The second single, "Woman" featuring Cleo Sol, was released on 6 May 2021 with a music video directed by Little Simz. [10] The track "Rollin Stone" was released as the third single on 14 June 2021, [11] followed by "I Love You, I Hate You" as the fourth single on 8 July 2021. [12] [13] A fifth single, "Point and Kill" featuring Obongjayar, was released on 1 September 2021, followed by a music video. [14]
An accompanying European tour was announced on 28 May 2021, scheduled for winter 2021 and early 2022. [15]
Critical reception
The album received widespread acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 88, based on 24 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". [18]
In the review for AllMusic Timothy Monger compared the album favourably to its predecessor; "As on Grey Area , there are no dry spells or dips in quality, just a master class in modern songwriting with heaps of poise and a beating, soulful heart." [19] Lee Wakefield for Clash wrote that Sometimes I Might Be Introvert makes for "addictive listening", adding that "the cinematic flourishes are cranked up and Simz is more confessional than ever, pondering what defines her as both Little Simz the artist and Simbi the person." [20] Uncut concluded it was "an even more ambitious conceptual album that finds her sharing her insecurities, praising her heroes and going on a fairytale voyage over 19 tracks." [18] Writing for The Independent , Helen Brown described it as "the most thrilling album of the year", praising the "Bond theme-level orchestration" in the production and Little Simz's lyricism. Rachel Aroesti, writing for The Guardian , concluded Sometimes I Might Be Introvert "may or may not provide a commercial boost for its maker, but this rich, fascinating album cements Little Simz’s significance regardless." [22]
Entertainment Weekly noted that Little Simz "once again showcases her vulnerability, opening up old wounds from relationships with her father, a past lover, and, ultimately, herself." [21] PJ Somerville from The Line of Best Fit commented that "Talking family, trauma, the industry and her peers, Sometimes I Might Be Introvert is tactical, theatrical, and is the product of 100,000 hours spent honing her craft resulting in a body of work with heart, and its head firmly on its shoulders." [24] Granting the record Album of the Week, James Rettig for Stereogum declared Sometimes I Might Be Introvert as Simz's "most personal album yet but also her most removed, in the sense that it’s cinematic and surreal and overwhelming", praising the subject matter and "sweeping orchestral" production. [28] PopMatters' John Amen praised the album, writing that Simz "moves from stream-of-consciousness confessions to epigrammatic observations, volatile rants to equanimous self-examinations, and personal confessions to broad societal diagnoses." [29]
Hip Hop Golden Age compared the album to Lauryn Hill's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998), saying it "echoes Lauryn Hill's masterpiece (...) in ambition, scope, musicality and timelessness". [30]
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