Inayah did not come to play it safe. The singer-songwriter released her fourth studio album, Therapy Wasn’t Enough, on June 5 via EMPIRE, and it may be her most emotionally precise work to date. The 11-track project clocks in at just under 36 minutes but covers real ground, exploring love, accountability, and the messy work of actually building something lasting with another person.
The album’s thesis is right there in the title: therapy alone isn’t the finish line. Inayah spoke about the shift behind its creation, saying she “evolved in her womanhood” and began “digesting and caring to learn what it really means to share your life with somebody.” That intentionality runs through the whole record.
Standout moments include “Outside,” a feel-good summer anthem that samples Lil Mo‘s “4Ever” and interpolates Usher’s “You Don’t Have To Call,” and earlier single “Choose,” recorded while Inayah was actively working through grief in real time. She was also deliberate about bringing back bridges, an element she feels has gone missing in modern R&B. “I’ve always wanted to do that in my artistry,” she said.
Therapy Wasn’t Enough is raw, honest, and exactly the kind of album R&B needs right now.
