The exquisite pain expressed on “Love Rain” also felt like something to be envied, not for the circumstances of a failed romantic relationship but because of the poeticism that made pain feel almost alluring. This included the romantic buzz around her hit, “The Way.” I had not yet experienced a romantic relationship, but the eagerness in Jill Scott’s lyrics and voice made me want to desperately know what it was that she was so happy about, and if I could do something to deserve that sort of happiness. I listened to Jill Scott’s music without a clear intellectual or spiritual idea of what she was singing about, but already comprehending that I wanted to experience it - experience it all.

In my bedroom as a child, as I prepared myself to go to sleep. This has been Jill Scott’s discipline since she arrived. The song quickly bleeds into the “Crown Royal,” a sultry piece of dynamite that oozes instead of explodes: “You’re getting so deep that I am breathing for you.” She resolves the erotic tension with “And you’re so thick and you are so crown royal on ice.” This is lovemaking on wax. I can’t believe it,” Jill Scott sings on her song “Imagination/Crown Royal Suite”.

Jill Scott introduced herself to the public with a question: “Who is Jill Scott?” The exploration and finding the answer to the question, which also served as the name of her debut album, was a way to define herself and in the process, define sensuality, power, and soul for my generation.

Jill scott love songs