Pop music in 2025 is split clean down the middle. On one side, you’ve got the overcaffeinated algorithm-bait songs where the chorus kicks in before you’ve even realized there was a verse, desperately waving its arms for your attention like it’s about to drown. On the other side, you’ve got the slow-burners: tracks that sound like they wandered into the room halfway through a conversation and are perfectly fine with letting you catch up. You Will Want My Love, the new single from Shelita, is firmly in the second one. It doesn’t shout to be noticed. Rather, it just sits there, confident you’ll eventually stop scrolling long enough to notice how good it looks in that corner.
The song was co-written with William Henshall of Londonbeat and Bellringer, who has worked with Britney Spears. This is the sort of credit list that, in lesser hands, could produce something that sounds like a committee-approved Applebee’s commercial. But Shelita doesn’t do that. The track opens with what I can only describe as the bare minimum you can get away with and still call it a pop song; heartbeat percussion, faint synth glows, and a lot of silence in between. And then Shelita’s voice arrives. It’s rich, soulful, cinematic, and crucially: present. You can almost hear the breath between phrases, which is either excellent mic technique or just her being genuinely that good.
Now, the production might nod toward modern minimalist pop in the vein of Tate McRae’s recent work, but Shelita’s vocals… well, they lean more toward “What if Christina Aguilera decided she wanted to do an intimate session for NPR’s Tiny Desk?” It’s a fascinating blend: the instrumental’s all cool detachment, the voice is all emotional heat, and together they form this tension that feels like it might crack the song in half at any moment.
The title, You Will Want My Love, isn’t a request. It’s a promise. The chorus refuses to do the big pop explosion you expect. Instead, it doubles down on the hypnotic vibe, looping its melody and wrapping you in airy harmonies until you forget what other music sounds like. It’s sneaky. You think it’s underplaying its hand, but by the third listen, you’re humming it without realizing.
Production-wise, it’s all about the negative space. Every reverb tail, every delayed vocal echo feels like it’s been placed with tweezers. The result is that cinematic, moody quality you usually get from high-budget HBO drama soundtracks, the kind of scene where two characters are looking at each other in a way that’s both loving and threatening.
As the first single from her upcoming album Into the Depths, it works as both a teaser and a declaration of intent. Yes, the industry credentials are impressive. But the reason it works is because it doesn’t feel like a product. Shelita’s not begging for your attention on You Will Want My Love; she’s assuming she already has it. And given how this song sticks around in your head long after it ends, she’s probably right.
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About the Author
A tenured media critic known working as a ghost writer, freelance critic for various publications around the world, the former lead writer of review blogspace Atop The Treehouse and content creator for Manila Bulletin.
