The Creation of The Abstract Lounge: Frequency Essays
By Derrick L. Wyatt
By Derrick L. Wyatt
The Abstract Lounge: Frequency Essays feels special to me because it’s built on time, memory, travel, reflection, and coming back to creativity. Most of the album comes from tracks I made between 2010 and 2022, plus a few new songs I created in 2025 after leaving my career in healthcare, digital health, and health services research. In many ways, this project connects my past, my experiences, and who I am now as both an artist and a person.
I called it The Abstract Lounge because I wanted it to feel like a neighborhood club or lounge, but not just any nightlife establishment. I wanted it to be a place where you walk in and instantly feel the atmosphere, soul, thought, elegance, rhythm, and a sense of release. The music is meant to do more than entertain; it’s there to help you settle in, think, remember, breathe, reflect, and feel. I chose 'Abstract' because it’s part of my creative style and shows that my music is about feeling, spirit, movement, memory, thought, and the unseen things that shape us. For me, “abstract” means having the freedom to create without limits, letting music be emotional, spiritual, intellectual, and soulful all at once.
That same spirit runs through several of my projects, including The Abstract Stream, Vols. 1 and 2; The Abstract Flow: Steppin’ Edition; The Abstract Beam: Mystic Scrolls; and The Abstract Collective. Each project has its own style, but they all share the goal of making music that moves your body, opens your mind, and feeds your soul. The Abstract Lounge: Frequency Essays is part of that family, but it feels like its own special room, more intimate, late-night, reflective, and true to my original musical instincts.
With this album, I wanted to return to my roots. Before I started making more traditional R&B songs, my style was shaped by a blend of hip-hop, retro neo-soul, funk, Chicago house, and smooth jazz productions. That’s where my love for making beats really comes from. I wanted this album to bring back that vibe. I wanted it to feel like a night out, where you listen to music and think about life, the challenges, the wins, the longing, the healing, and everything in between. I wanted to make music you can play while cruising in your ride, preparing for your day, working, exercising, reading, cleaning, winding down for bed, napping (which is one of my favorite things to do, as I like to say, “visiting the ancestors”), or while quietly relaxing and contemplating life.
This project wouldn’t be the same without the creative people who helped bring it to life. Qi Coffey, Terrell, A’Kir, Mystic Collective, and The Mystical Tribe all helped shape the vibe I was aiming for. Their writing, spoken word, vocals, and energy turned these songs into living spaces. The Abstract Lounge was never meant to feel flat. I wanted it to feel alive, filled with voices, stories, emotions, and energy moving through it.
There are many songs on this project that I’ll talk about more in a future series, but I want to mention a few now. I love songs that help set my mood and spirit right in the morning. For me, “It’s a Good Day” and “Peace and Light (Flow and Grow)” do just that. They set the tone for the day. These songs remind you to start your day with good energy, gratitude, and spiritual alignment. Sometimes music is more than just music; it can be an intention or a reset.
Love is a big theme on this album, and I wanted to keep it simple but strong. I once saw a post that said, “Love is literally the whole point.” That stuck with me and inspired “Love (It’s the Point)” and some of the deeper feelings in this project. To me, love is divine. It’s not just about romance, though that’s part of it. Love is energy, healing, and growth. It can bring back hope, expand dreams, ease pain, renew purpose, and remind us why we’re here. Even though the world often pushes fear, division, and distraction, love is still one of the most powerful forces we have. When we really learn to live in it and use it well, it can heal hearts, change relationships, raise our awareness, and help us live better.
That same energy is in “Cali Dreaming with You.” This song is about being in love and sharing time with someone while enjoying the beauty around you. My travels inspired this one a lot. Being in California, seeing the mountains, ocean, breezes, stars, beaches, and especially the ocean life, really moved me. I went whale watching and saw dolphins and a majestic whale, and those moments stay with you. To me, whales stand for depth, wisdom, spiritual guidance, and the idea that something big and sacred is always moving beneath the surface of life. Seeing those animals and the beauty of nature made me feel God’s presence in a new way. It reminds you how small you are, but also how connected you are. I’m grateful to A’Kir for helping with the writing and vocals on that song. It brings a sense of wonder, softness, gratitude, and love as both a human and spiritual experience.
“Ashiteru Yo (I Love You)” came from a place of gratitude, reflection, and deep emotion. The phrase ashiteru yo means “I love you” in Japanese, and I was drawn to how soft and sincere it sounds. On my flight back from California, looking out at the clouds and the world below, I felt a strong love for God and deep gratitude for the people in my life who truly love me. Being between places, above everything, watching the light and shapes change, opened something inside me. That feeling of gratitude and a sacred view of life became part of this album and stayed with me. I wanted the song to show that kind of love, a love that is peaceful, honest, spiritual, and full of presence. It’s about more than romance: it’s about love as a sacred force, as comfort, as gratitude, and as a reminder that we’re all connected, the world, and something greater. The song is also a tribute to everyone whose support and kindness have shaped my journey, especially those who stood by me through good times and challenges. It’s a thank you and a reminder that love, in all its forms, is meant to be shared and celebrated. Special thank you to Wy, Ky, and Miz. The song is attached below for a quick listening experience.
“Hey Girl” has its own story. Terrell wrote the song between 2017 and 2021. I took his rap and vocals and slowed things down, turning it into a jazzy, mid-tempo track over music I recorded in 2023. Mystic Collective and Terrell helped shape the flow, background vocals, and overall feel. To me, the song is about meeting someone and hoping this is the last search, the final chapter before real love settles in. It’s full of longing, maturity, and desire, but still keeps its groove.
That same feeling continues in “Waiting on Your Call” and “New Again.” These songs are about new love that seems to appear out of nowhere and changes everything around you. Waiting on Your Call is simple on purpose, because sometimes new love is simple. When you’re really connected, especially as best friends, you just want to talk, connect, laugh, build, and stay close. It’s about wanting that person in your everyday life. The lyrics are clear: wanting to talk about life, love, money, spiritual growth, missing their love, needing their energy, loving their soul, and wanting to give them everything. I wanted the song to have a juke joint vibe, with a mix of singing and spoken word—something smooth, personal, and full of heart.
“New Again” is about that same spiritual and emotional rebirth. For me, change isn’t just something that happens on the outside; it’s internal, energetic, and mental. Love can play a big part in that. Real love can change your mindset, bring back hope, and open new doors for your spirit. It can feel like you’re stepping into the life you’ve been hoping for, not as a fantasy, but because your inner world finally matches the future you want. Love, healing, and spiritual clarity can help you let go of your old life and start a new one. That’s what New Again means to me. It’s the sound of becoming.
“Water to My Fire” is about the balance love can bring. With Qi Coffey featured, the song looks at what it means to find someone who meets your intensity with calm, your heat with softness, and your passion with peace. Fire is strong, but so is water, and sometimes the right person doesn’t put out your fire; they cool you, steady you, and help you flow in a new way. That’s the feeling this song gives. It’s soulful, intimate, and deeply human, showing how love and emotional connection can bring comfort and change.
Then there’s “Look Up.” This song is about faith, love, and how some systems and illusions keep people from their true selves, from the Most High, and from real love. We live in a world full of boxes people step into, and those boxes often cost us our most precious resource: time. The song reminds us to look higher, think deeper, and resist false stories that try to define us before we define ourselves. It’s about taking back our awareness, knowing free will is real, but so are the traps, and remembering that spiritual vision matters.
When I look at this album as part of Mystic Arts Enterprises, it fits the mission perfectly. My goal with Mystic Arts Enterprises LLC is to create music, books, films, podcasts, and visual stories that nourish the soul, expand the mind, and inspire personal freedom. This project does that by offering music that’s not just enjoyable, but meaningful. It invites you to reflect, rest, love, look within, and slow down enough to really hear yourself again.
That’s what I want this project—and all my projects—to do. I want them to be good for the soul and help people get through life. I hope they feel like companions for the ride home, a quiet night, a healing season, a morning reset, or those days when you need to think or remember that beauty, spirit, love, and truth are still here. The Abstract Lounge: Frequency Essays is part lounge club, part journal, part prayer, part memory, part mood, and part mirror. It’s a space for good energy, and I’m grateful to share it.
If The Abstract Lounge: Frequency Essays connects with you, I’d love for you to stay in touch. Visit my YouTube channel, @derricklwyattmusic, subscribe for updates, and follow along as I share new music, videos, and creative projects. You can also support the music by adding your favorite songs to your playlists on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music, or by sharing on social media and using the music in your stories and posts. That kind of support means a lot and helps the music reach more people.
Rooted in love. Guided by spirit. Created with purpose.
Dr Derrick L Wyatt