Normani releases debut solo single ‘Motivation’

R&B singer Normani released her debut solo single “Motivation” on Friday.

The song was inspired by Normani’s New Orleans roots, but the video is an homage to pop stars of the early 2000s, with a number of intricately choreographed dances that are reminiscent of Beyonce’s early solo work.

Normani rose to prominence in 2012 as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony. Following the band’s indefinite hiatus in 2018, she released a number of collaborations with other artists, including “Love Lies” with Khalid and “Dancing With a Stranger” with Sam Smith.

The singer also recently appeared as an opening act on the North American leg of Ariana Grande’s Sweetener World Tour.

The track and its accompanying music video received rave reviews on Twitter, with many fans praising Normani’s dancing.

“The dancing in this video can’t keep me still!Her moves are outta control!!! Thank you @Normani for the #Motivation on this Friday!” one fan tweeted.

Grande, who co-wrote the song along with Normani, Max Martin, Ilya, and Savan Kotecha, congratulated Normani Friday morning.

You can listen to the song and watch the video here.

In a recent interview with Rolling Stone in Chicago where she was appearing at Lollapalooza, the singer said: “I recorded this song a while back. And it’s crazy because, I’ll be on Twitter, and [fans] will be like, ‘Sis, where’s the new music? Where’s the new music? I’m like, ‘Guys, it’s coming. I promise it’s coming.’ I shot the video probably a month ago. It’s going to be worth the wait…It’s an upbeat [song]. It’s a feel good record. I think that everybody will really love it. It was the first opportunity that I had to have fun.”