Cristale Releases Debut Mixtape ‘Clear Intentions’

The Brixton rapper and actress balances sharp bars with her most reflective writing yet.

Cristale has released her debut mixtape, ‘Clear Intentions’, and it closes on its most exposed moment. New single ‘I’m Okay With Being Lonely’ ends the ten-track project on guitar melodies and a hard-won sense of peace.

The mixtape opens with the swagger of ‘No Harm’, then moves between confident rap records and quieter ones. ‘Top 3’ finds her in full control, delivering cutting bars with clarity. ‘Mario’ shows her playful side, a grime-tinged nod to the Nintendo icon, while ‘MMM’ pairs more animated references with slackened piano and bass strings. Then it softens. ‘Never Leave Me’ is piano-led and sombre, a long way from the bravado of ‘Quantum Loop’. Cristale also had a hand in producing the project, working with Young Chencs, Sphero and Ferno, among others.

‘I’m Okay With Being Lonely’ is where the writing goes deepest. She describes the isolation that has come with her journey to clarity: working out whether losing someone is a loss or a gain, and whether it’s forever or just for a season. Eventually, pouring energy into people, and into the idea of them, costs more than she’s willing to spend. “There’s a fine line between being lonely and alone,” she says, “I know which one I prefer.”

The release comes with her COLORS debut, where she performs mixtape track ‘H2O’ in a stripped-back session that keeps her delivery front and centre.

It’s a big moment for an artist whose profile has been climbing fast. The MOBO-nominated rapper appeared on Skrillex & ISOxo’s ‘Smoke’ from the producer’s album ‘SOMA’, and opened for Kojey Radical’s Royal Albert Hall debut earlier this year.