Frank Ocean recorded his first Blonded RADIO episode in two years on Saturday (Dec. 25), gifting fans with some new material for Christmas. The half hour show, dubbed “blonded xmas,” features a previously recorded conversation between Ocean, whose brother Ryan Moore died last year, and Dutch motivational speaker Wim “Iceman” Hof about dealing with grief.
“Me and @iceman_hof had a conversation some time ago when I was in the earlier stages of grief and I remember marveling afterwards at how his energy blasted through the phone,” Ocean revealed on his Instagram Stories. “So much vim in this Wim. We spoke for a while about his work, the purpose of grief, and how going into the cold water changed his life. It reminded me of conversations in the studio with players I know. Freewheeling, psychedelic, emotionally charged, intelligent and generous.”
“I enjoyed listening to him, so in this edit I just let him speak uninterrupted,” Ocean added. “Me, @coryhenry and @dylanpatricewiggins played some sounds underneath to heighten the feeling. I added some writing at the end that I did a single take of w Cory in the summer of 2020. I came back and added a few words and parts over the top of that take more recently. Felt like it fit the wabi sabi of Wim’s words. Merry Xmas everybody.”
Fans who’ve missed the reclusive singer will be excited to know Ocean freestyles over a piano for close to nine minutes during the Apple Music 1 show. “I could be great, I’m on my way / If I wanna escape, I can escape,” he repeatedly raps.
The last time we heard Frank on blonded Radio was Christmas Eve 2019. In that episode, also titled “blonded Xmas,” Ocean put together an eclectic playlist featuring Mariah Carey, Solange, the Dungeon Family, George Harrison, and The Miracles.
Check out Frank’s latest “blonded Xmas” episode here and listen to music he ended the show with below: