Meaning of “Footsteps” by Kehlani (ft. Musiq Soulchild)

In the song “Footsteps”, singers Kehlani and Musiq Soulchild play the roles of two lovers. Sadly their romance has come to an end. And throughout the song, they are reminiscing on the things that went wrong as well as lamenting on the other’s inability to rectify the situation.

The detrimental factor that Kehlani first mentions is lack of patience between the couple. She also acknowledges her own personality faults, which she can’t seem to exorcise. There also appears to be leftover feelings from previous romances, as well as her engaging in actions that are deemed ‘inexcusable’.

Musiq Soulchild expresses the same sentiment, that past romances are affecting his relationship with Kehlani and not in a good way. For instance, he has developed low self-esteem in terms of dealing with a significant other. He was also selfish in dealing with Kehlani, being preoccupied with fulfilling his own emotional needs while neglecting hers. He also expresses regret at walking away from the relationship, yet it felt like the right thing to do at the time. Finally, he says that despite what Kehlani may presume, he still thinks about her daily.

Sentiments that the two of them express in common are at least an appreciation for the other person being honest. Also, they both admit that they didn’t know what they truly desired. The one thing that was evident though is the love they shared, despite it lasting only a brief period. 

Chorus

The chorus of the song implies that although they went their separate ways, each of them left the door open for the union to be rectified. However, the other person, being so inept at romance, will most likely let the opportunity slip away, which would result in the relationship being lost forever.

Facts about “Footsteps”

• Writer(s): “Footsteps” was written by its multi-talented singers, Musiq Soulchild along with Kehlani.
• Producer(s): The production of the song was carried out by music producer SuperDuperBrick alongside J Young.
• Album/EP/Mixtape: Kehlani’s 2019 mixtape titled While We Wait has 9 tracks on it. “Footsteps” is the first of these tracks.
• Release Date: Kehlani and Musiq Soulchild released the track on 22 February 2019.
• Record Label: Two record companies made the release of this track possible. They are: Atlantic Records and TSNMI.
• 1^st Interesting Stuff: “Footsteps” interpolates Omarion’s 2006 song titled “Ice Box”.
• 2^nd Interesting Stuff: This song saw Kehlani working with Musiq Soulchild for the first time in her career.
• 3^rd Fascinating Stuff: With a length of 4:33, “Footsteps” is the longest of all the 9 tracks on the mixtape While We Wait. And by the way, While We Wait is Kehlani’s third mixtape to be released commercially.

Was “Footsteps” released as a single?

No. The only singles that came out of the mixtape While We Wait are the following:

• “Nights Like This” (ft. Ty Dolla Sign)
• “Butterfly”
• “Nunya” (ft. Dom Kennedy)

Did You Know – Kehlani’s distinctive looks are due to her having a number of different ethnicities – including African-American, Caucasian and Native American – in her recent lineage.