(March 19, 2025) Since his early professional gigs in and around Los Angeles during the eighties, Robert IMtume Owens has carved a niche as a distinctly sophisticated modern-soul vocalist. While spending time on both coasts pursuing his passion for the culinary arts, he has continued to release new music and garner appreciative audiences across the UK and France with singles such as “Vibration,” “I Wanna Go Back,” and “Don’t Give Up.”
Owens’ latest single finds him joining forces with another luminous singer who got her start via the boogie-funk scene of the ‘80s, Kim Covington. On “Friends and Lover,” the duo exchanges romantic reminiscing across a pointedly nostalgic groove inspired by the hook-savvy underpinnings of Chic with a dash of Luther Vandross-esque smoothness. Collectors of private-label modern soul may detect a few arrangement aspects along the lines of Owens’ first regional hit, “Must Be Loving You.” The finishing touch is Covington’s stylish phrasing, which harkens back to her sought-after 1983 release, “All of My Love.”
Check out “Friends and Lover” and welcome back Robert IMtume Owens with special guest Kim Covington to SoulTracks!
