Kenny Sharp’s new single, “World Stand Still,” eases you in gently, pulls you in with a slow, pausing stare, and then gradually proceeds to sweep you off your feet. Kenny lures listeners into a stripped-down world that seems as intimate as a conversation at midnight. There’s a certain stillness at the outset, fragile, deliberate, vulnerable. Armed with just a stripped soundscape to work with, Kenny’s soulful delivery cuts through this barren affair. Every line is a brushstroke in a vibrant emotional tableau that showcases Charles’s signature gift for transforming life into song.
But don’t allow yourself to settle into that softness. “World Stand Still” isn’t content to shut up. Throughout the track, it unfolds into something more grand, patient, and methodical, echoing emotional growth, artistic evolution, and perhaps even the passage of time itself. It’s the type of song that shape-shifts before your very eyes, moving from a whispery opening to an echoing full sound that seems to fill every last inch of the room. And that is the magic of Kenny Sharp. He’s the maker of moments. “World Stand Still” is one of those songs that feels timeless from the moment you first hear it.
It’s a film about the push and pull between vulnerability and power, between solitude and connection. Is it any surprise that he’s emerged as such a stalwart figure in soulful storytelling? On “World Stand Still,” Kenny provides a temporary respite from the whirlpool, a time to inhale, reflect, and feel. And when an artist can do that, make the world stand still, if only for a few minutes, that’s worth paying attention to.