Since finding fame as a retro soul singer, Leon Bridges has continually added fascinating wrinkles to his sound. Bridges’ 2018 album Good Thing nudged his sound in a more modern direction while keeping one foot in the past. He has successfully collaborated with artists ranging from DeJ Loaf to John Mayer, and he recently released a whole EP with his fellow Texans, the psych-funk trio Khruangbin. Today he delivers another satisfying evolution.

Bridges’ new single “Sweeter” pairs him with Terrace Martin, the LA jazz and hip-hop virtuoso whose aggressive protest anthem “PIG FEET” topped our list of last week’s best songs. This one’s far calmer on the surface, but a storm rages inside. On “Sweeter,” against a slow-creeping programmed beat and Martin’s gentle saxophone flourishes, Bridges reckons with life under racism: “Hoping for a life more sweeter/ Instead I’m just a story repeating/ Why do I fear with skin dark as night?/ Can’t feel peace with those judging eyes.” It’s a lovely and compelling piece of music.

Listen below.