Grab your iced matcha, put your AirPods on noise cancellation, and tell your situationship you’ll text them back later, because we need to talk about Ella Mai.
If you’ve been manifesting an R&B album that actually sounds like the R&B we grew up stanning, your vision board just worked. Ella Mai teamed back up with DJ Mustard to drop her highly anticipated third studio album, Do You Still Love Me?, and honestly? They ate and left absolutely no crumbs.
There is a massive recurring theme happening in R&B right now: artists are finally getting back to their core sounds, and we are not mad at it at all. Ella Mai completely understood the assignment. She took us straight back to the sonic universe that made us fall in love with her during the 2018 “Boo’d Up” and “Trip” era, but with a grown, healed, and elevated twist.
This album isn’t trying to chase a viral TikTok sound. It’s strictly vibes, authentic storytelling, and flawless vocals. She is giving us raw, unfiltered emotion, and it is an unskippable experience all the way through.
Going back to the sound we all loved from her isn’t a regression, it’s a homecoming. Ella Mai is completely in her bag.
DJ Mustard’s Masterclass in Versatility
We need to have a serious conversation about DJ Mustard’s range, because he put on an absolute masterclass in production on this project. We all know him for his iconic club anthems, but on Do You Still Love Me?, he proves he is an incredibly versatile architect of modern R&B.
He seamlessly blends trap-soul bounces with lush, nostalgic R&B instrumentation. The synergy between his beats and Ella’s tone is unmatched. They are basically the R&B equivalent of an elite NBA duo—throwing alley-oops and hitting every single shot.
The Tracklist: Main Character Energy Only
Ella’s pen game is top-tier on this album, effortlessly capturing what it feels like to be down bad, in love, or just fiercely independent. Every track hits, but let’s talk about the standouts:
- “Tell Her”: The single that soft-launched this era. With that genius Destiny’s Child “Say My Name” interpolation, it’s an absolute bop that will live rent-free in our heads all year.
- “Somebody’s Son”: If you are currently smitten, this is your new anthem. Ella talks about being completely weak for a man who treats her right, and the production perfectly matches that “crying in the club but make it happy tears” energy.
- “Bonus”: Mustard completely showed out here. The beat gives major late-90s Timbaland vibes with electronic bass and drums, creating a slinky, late-night track that is effortlessly flawless.
- “My Mind”: This track brings an old-school hip-hop soul feel with a piano and drum loop that feels so classic but completely fresh.
The Final Verdict
Ella Mai didn’t just drop an album; she gave us the soundtrack to our 2026. Do You Still Love Me? is proof that when an artist and a producer genuinely understand each other, the result is pure magic. It’s vulnerable, it’s a vibe, and it proves that authentic R&B is very much alive and well.
So, does she still have our love? No cap, more than ever.
