New local pop duo Mdnt Embsy releases debut single 24 Hours

“ALL I NEED is 24 hours with you, baby,” is the plea of local pop duo Mdnt Embsy (Midnight Embassy) in their debut single 24 Hours. The candid yet sultry track speaks to longing, desire, love and lust. It takes listeners into a world where fleeting moments of intimacy can heal and transform.

The duo comprises Jerel “Sarkastik Ambassador” Ramsey and Timothy “TOOFLESS” Dabreo.

They’ve each been doing their own music for some years, citing interest in the art form since childhood.

But they first connected around 2022, Ramsey recalled in a phone interview on June 4.

“We had been speaking online occasionally (as) we had seen each other's content (music) and were commenting. But then we got booked for the same radio interview on True Talk No Lie."

When Ramsey released Channels (an EP) last August, “I told him (Dabreo) I wanted to work with him because I love his production."

Dabreo, though, joked that his work was not “the best” in the earlier days, but that he consistently worked on his craft.

“When I was 16 I was writing terrible rap songs,” he said with a laugh. “Just recording like terrible verses over YouTube (instrumentals).”

But he now has his own album titled Phoenix, released in May.

The two singers arranged to meet up again and Dabreo played some of his songs.

In the word of music, it’s common for two people to say they want to work together and then years go by and nothing materialises.

They said this was not the case.

“We were very active on this,” Dabreo said.

Like some foreign duos, including Kids See Ghosts (Kanye West and Kid Cudi), and Silk Sonic (Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars), they wanted their name to also be unique.

Ramsey said, “The idea of these songs that I wanted to do was songs that you can listen to in the car at night when you're going to a party or coming from a party…when you just want to vibe to something a little bit…”

He suggested the name to Dabreo, who was immediately on board.

When asked what genre of music they make, they both paused. They later explained it was because it was something they kept revisiting. They found it difficult to settle on any one genre because of the “Caribbean fusion,” among others, embedded within their creations.

But after a few minutes of pondering further, they settled on Caribbean pop or Cari-pop.

“We have had this discussion multiple times,” Ramsey said, noting that 24 Hours was listed as pop on streaming platforms.

The idea for the three-minute, 22-second song was based on a real experience by Dabreo, which Ramsey could also relate to a bit.

“I had a friend (wink wink) who came back to Trinidad after a long time, and we decided to reunite. But we didn't get a whole day together. I only got like a couple of hours with her. And I was like, ‘Damn, I wish I could have had at least 24 hours with you,’” Dabreo explained.

Ramsey understood that feeling, having been in a long-distance relationship with his now wife.

"So it resonated very much with me in terms of that," he said.

Dabreo’s voice is the first you hear on the track, explaining that it feels like he and his “friend” are living in a fantasy.

He sings, “You been on my mind. Have I been on yours?/Living dangerously, the way I put my hands on she/ But now we out of time, and I just want you more.”

The pre-chorus speaks to their romantic interests only calling when she’s upset with her partner, but they’re okay with it.

“No conversations when you say you coming home/We gotta plan just for us to be alone.”

In the chorus, comes the plea of just getting 24 hours with the person.

“All I need is 24 hours with you, baby. Won't get no sleep 'cause those 24 hours just might save me...Can’t you see that those 24 hours just might change me?"

Their voices are complemented by the soothing, melodic sounds of a guitar throughout the track.

They conclude, "More time is all I want for us. No one can stop what we have."

It features additional vocals by Jannix Felix Joseph and the track’s executive producer is veteran producer Ken Holder/Shoroc Production.

The track is part of an upcoming project set to be released this year.

They believe their sounds and approaches to music are very similar.

“Mine tends to be more Caribbean-focused, and his tends to be more pop. And I think we kind of mesh on that a lot because now we're kind of both into this fusing of genres.”

As for Dabreo, he said, “(Jerel’s) songwriting approach is like mine in terms of finding the most pleasant-sounding melody possible, and then adding the most emotion-evoking words that you can to that pleasant-sounding melody.”

They both praised Holder, whose studio they used and who assisted greatly with the mixing and mastering process.

They described him as a coach.

“He just talked to us about the industry and how things work a little more,” Ramsey said.

“After just one studio session with him, my entire approach to production just changed. A lot of it was him saying, ‘Try this’ or ‘Do that,' and I just listened,” Dabreo said.

24 Hours is on all streaming platforms. Details of their upcoming project will be posted to their social media pages: mdntembsy.