Son Kuma Turns Grind Culture Into Gold on Soulful New Single ‘Overtime’

Film Photographer: Sara Espinosa

Inglewood’s own Son Kuma is back with a track that feels like both a sigh and a statement. “Overtime,” the first single off his upcoming self-produced album Keep That Energy, is a hazy, alternative R&B gem that blends hypnotic production with sharp, layered lyricism. For an artist who has balanced physics degrees with mixtape milestones, this release feels like the most natural next step that embraces both intellectual weight and emotional vulnerability.

The song opens in a warm lo-fi haze, where minimal instrumentation leaves space for Kuma’s conversational vocals to breathe. It is intimate without trying too hard, the kind of delivery that makes you feel like you are in the room with him. His tone is calm but steady, carrying the weight of someone who has been putting in the hours physically, mentally, and emotionally. Early listeners have pointed out how natural this delivery feels, and it is true: Kuma does not force a thing.

Lyrically, “Overtime” threads clever wordplay with raw commentary. When he raps, “reap and sow what it seems, they seem so unaware they wear you out,” it is more than a workplace gripe. It is a sharp critique of the grind culture that chews through creatives. Sewing, seaming, sowing, and wearing each homophone folds into the bigger picture: work consumes, and the worker is left drained.

The chorus drives it home with painful simplicity: “I might not come home tonight, I’m working overtime.” It is an anthem for anyone caught in the tug of war between survival and freedom, between grinding for a dream and losing yourself in the process. Kuma describes it as a tragic oxymoron. He fantasizes about a better life while work becomes the very means of escape.

Sonically, the track blurs genre lines. The atmospheric textures lean toward modern R&B, similar to Brent Faiyaz or SZA, while Kuma’s phrasing and wordplay echo Chance the Rapper and Smino. It is experimental without feeling detached, soulful without being boxed in.

“Overtime” does not explode; it lingers. It is the kind of track that gets under your skin slowly, a soundtrack for late nights when you are questioning why you are still at your desk, or why your phone buzzes when you would rather be home. For Son Kuma, this single is less about flexing and more about reflecting. If this is the entry point to Keep That Energy, fans are in for an album that does not just play, it resonates.

How did creating the beat yourself shape the song's overall vibe?

I appreciate BuzzMusic to the max! Been working with y'all since 2021. The idea for this song came about pretty randomly. I was in my car, waiting for someone, and I wanted to imagine what the tracklist for an "Energy/Physics" inspired album or EP would look like. I started jotting down potential song titles that incorporated physical quantities: "By Force", "Long Distance", "Are We Working Enough?", "Overtime", "Power", etc... As I started composing and sequencing these songs, a common theme of work impeding personal/spiritual progress started to manifest. 

By nature, "Overtime" had to serve as a moment of both tension and release. With that in mind, I knew the production of this song would need to embody a form of duality, which I captured through intentional contrast between the verses and the hook. The verse production is supported by light percussion, jazzy guitar strumming, sparse bass, and soft melodic progressions.

The hook's production feels heavy, almost like gravity got turned back on because the arrangement suddenly thickens with layered synths and bass. I wanted the hook to feel more labored without losing its chill, nighttime aesthetic. This sonic contrast mirrors the song's central tension: the fantasy of freedom versus the reality of being overworked to attain it. 

You balance clever wordplay with deeply personal themes—do you write lyrics first or let the production guide your storytelling?

This song started as a concept. The song titles and sequencing "By Force", "Long Distance", "Are We Working Enough?", "Overtime", "Power" that I randomly brainstormed started to stick. I began to sit with these ideas and weave them together into a cohesive narrative. I imagined a character who would do anything for freedom, even take it by force. But the fantasy of revolution threatened the societal balance that allowed him to one day settle down with the love of his life.

This character decides to overwork himself so that one day he can afford this life of freedom with his beloved, leading to something of a long-distance relationship between them. She begs the question, "Are We Working Enough?" 

Overtime is his answer to that question. No, we aren't working enough; in fact, our character feels compelled to work more. With this in mind, I vaguely knew what the song was about before I even wrote the lyrics. I let this abstract concept guide the production, which in turn guided my lyrics and solidified the story I wanted to tell. 

The songwriting is clever and layered, with subtle work-related wordplay like "reap and sow what it seems, they seem so unaware they wear you out" -- a line that critiques the corporate disconnect where higher-ups assume you're reaping rewards from producing results when in reality, you're worn out.

The line threads together homophones and clothing metaphors: sew/sow, seam/seem, and wear/unaware, to tell a story: I do the sewing and seaming, while the corporations and the consumers wear me out. The laborious anthem, "I might not come home tonight, I'm working overtime," is simple but potent. I wrote it in the shower right after sequencing the beat switch.

I don't usually write hooks away from the mic, but this one just felt so apparent that I immediately recorded it afterwards. What follows, "I know there's more to life, put in work till I die," is a tragic oxymoron that aches with emotional suppression -- I fantasize about a better life while using work as a means to escape my current one. For the second verse, I wanted to explore what happens after this realization, particularly the struggle of putting in Overtime when you want to go home to be with your partner. 

"I pick up the phone to hear the tone of your voice fasho, now you're putting on a show like whoa. You know how this goes... Tell me you've seen this episode, in this scene you've got no clothes and I'm fiending for you, hoe, can't believe I'm on the road now..." I kept the delivery playful to capture the tug-of-war between duty and desire. In this hypothetical scenario, it seems like the character ditches work and speeds home to his partner, but by the end of the verse, it's revealed that he won't be coming home after all -- "I'm not tryna be foul, I'm just on third base. I got a lot on my plate, so I might not come home tonight. I'm working Overtime."

The chorus captures the struggle between grind and freedom. How much of this song reflects your own lived experience post-label setbacks?

The struggle of being an independent musician is real. I love the freedom that comes with independence, but the responsibilities and obligations that follow are far from desirable. It isn't easy to balance my life, day jobs, and artist career. My day jobs take up most of my time and fund my life and artistic pursuits.

With little time left and split resources, I have had to sacrifice many personal relationships and constantly ask myself, "Is this worth it?" The song not only captures my own struggle, but the struggles of many people I am close to. I knew this song would resonate because many of us share this feeling.

Genre-wise, this track pulls from R&B, hip hop, and lo-fi textures. Who are your biggest sonic influences right now?

Right now, I don't have many sonic influences, which is not common for me. I think with this song and the rest of this album, I wanted to really look inward and find my frequency. That being said, I really love Leon Thomas. He's probably my favorite artist right now, which may have influenced me to take a smoother approach with my production this album cycle.

Looking ahead, what message or energy do you want Keep That Energy to leave listeners with?

It isn't easy because we live in a society where, unfortunately, you have to work and give up your energy for survival.  The goal then should be to find a way to limit how much energy we give to non-replenishing recipients like exploitative companies, non-supporters, and parasites, and keep the rest of it. Because the more energy you have stored up, the bigger shockwave you can produce when it matters most. The album concludes with a song called "It Matters," and I hope it will communicate this message effectively.