Kehlani - Cloud 19 (LP) - 45RPM Clear Vinyl

Cloud 19 didn’t arrive with a label machine or a splashy rollout. It landed on SoundCloud in August 2014, and within a few plays it felt like the start of something. Kehlani sounded fully formed at 19, sharp and tender at the same time, with melodies that moved like conversation. You could hear Oakland in the confidence and the warmth. You could also hear a student of 90s R&B who understood how to make that glow feel new.

“FWU” set the tone. It’s flirty, a little defiant, and built on those stacked harmonies that would become her calling card. The hook is simple and sticky. She rides the beat with an easy swing, but the writing is what lingers. It’s affectionate without being soft-headed, romantic without giving up any agency. Early fans latched onto it for good reason. Then “As I Am” came along and doubled down on the sincerity. The song is a promise with a little ache around the edges, a slow-bloom vocal that lets her phrasing do the heavy lifting. No vocal runs for the sake of it. Just feeling.

“Get Away” might be the mixtape’s quiet stunner. It sways, almost weightless, and you can hear how carefully she shapes a top line. The verses trace that push-pull of attraction and self-preservation, and the chorus floats like something you’ve known for years. It’s the sort of track that made people say she was bringing back a certain R&B intimacy, but really she was just writing with uncommon clarity. When “How We Do Us” arrives, Kyle Dion slips in as the perfect foil. Their voices spark in the pocket, a back-and-forth that plays like a late-night phone call. It’s playful, a little sly, and it proves how easily she could share space without compromising her presence.

What stands out across Cloud 19 is balance. The production keeps out of the way, with crisp drums and light keys or guitar shading, and Kehlani fills the open air with harmonies that feel hand-placed. The sequencing is lean, so each track lands and moves. No filler. If you were there when the tape hit, this was the moment she stopped being a local favorite and started feeling like a voice R&B needed. Within a year she’d level up with You Should Be Here, and that project would grab a Grammy nomination. But the DNA is here. The way she writes about love as a negotiation. The way she codes confidence as care.

Listening now, the mixtape plays like a snapshot of an artist who knew her lane before anyone else tried to tell her what it should be. That’s why it still inspires a little collector’s itch. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve checked the new-arrivals bin at my local Melbourne record store hoping for a surprise Cloud 19 vinyl pressing. Kehlani albums on vinyl like SweetSexySavage and It Was Good Until It Wasn’t are easier to spot, and if you buy Kehlani records online you’ll find plenty of solid pressings. But there’s a special place on the shelf waiting for Cloud 19 vinyl, because these songs feel like the origin story you want to hold in your hands. Kehlani vinyl tends to celebrate growth and hard-won joy. Cloud 19 celebrates possibility.

Part of Cloud 19’s charm is how human it is. She doesn’t posture as a superhero. She shows her cards and still keeps her cool. The writing is direct. The hooks are conversational. Even the ad-libs feel like a friend chiming in from the passenger seat. You can hear why her shows started catching fire around this time, because these are songs you can sing to yourself on the bus and then belt in a crowded room. That dual life is the mark of a real songwriter.

If you’re doing a deep dive, start with “FWU,” “As I Am,” “Get Away,” and the Kyle Dion duet. Then let the rest unfold. The mixtape is short enough to run straight through, then loop back without fatigue. It’s also a reminder that big careers often begin with small, focused statements. Cloud 19 didn’t need grandeur. It needed heart and craft, and it has both in spades. That’s why a decade on, it still feels like a fresh breeze, the kind you notice even if you weren’t looking for it.