So Deep in Love It's Not Even a Question: Ella Mai's Do You Still Love Me?

A decade into her career, Ella Mai sounds more certain than ever, and on her third album, Do You Still Love  Me?, that certainty is rooted entirely in love. Ella Mai invites us into a chapter of her life defined not by  turbulence, but by tenderness. This R&B album is nothing short of a declaration of love. It feels like a soft exhale, a body of work shaped by security, devotion, and the calm assurance of a woman deeply settled in love (as both  a partner and a mother). That serenity seeps into every corner of the album and is instantly felt from the first  listen. The pacing is unhurried, the production gentle, and the emotional tone unwaveringly warm. 

From the opening track, “There Goes My Heart”, Mai sets the thematic blueprint. It’s a confession. Not one of  infatuation, but of surrender. She reflects on once guarding her independence, building emotional walls brick by  brick: “These walls I took my time to build / Came down when you showed me something real.” The song  captures the dismantling of old defences, the quiet shock of feeling safe enough to let someone in and release  the feeling of needing to control how and when you fall in love. It casts aside a former version of herself, one who  liked her own space. Instead, now she is someone who admits, “These days I just want you here.” 

That sense of security within her relationship becomes the album’s emotional anchor. Love, in Ella Mai’s world, is  not risky or chaotic. It’s dependable. It’s grown. It’s intentional. On 'My Mind', Mai sings a line that encapsulates  the ethos of the entire record, "Love with you ain't risky". That sentiment pulses through every track. The tempo  of this album itself feels indicative of how genuine her feelings are; nothing sounds performative or overly  dramatised - like the love she feels for her partner, “there ain't nothing 'bout this fake” (on 'First Day'). She’s not  selling a fantasy of love. She’s living in one, and it’s grounded. 

Furthermore, the genuineness of the love that she gives out and receives is captured perfectly in her tone and  delivery across the entirety of Do You Still Love Me? Vocally, she leans into softness rather than spectacle. The  production rarely rises above a slow burn, opting instead for soothing instrumentation that mirrors the steadiness 

of her relationship. There are no club-ready moments, no dramatic crescendos and the reasoning is clear, as Mai  claims she's "not built for outside". On 'Outside' Ella Mai's vocals are paired with a simple piano composition,  singing, "I love the life we creating / My favourite place to stay in/...really ain't sh*t for me outside". The result is a  mid-tempo project through and through. 

Image Credit: Jordan Perez

With fourteen tracks orbiting the same emotional centre, my man; my love, and my peace, the record can feel  one-note. The absence of tempo shifts or thematic variety means the listening experience blurs together. There’s  beauty in the consistency, but it comes at the cost of dynamism. For some, it may feel like fourteen variations of  the same song, gentle affirmations layered over similar sonic palettes. Even the one narrative detour, 'Might  Just', a track where she recounts a dream about her man cheating, only reinforces how deeply invested she is.  The scenario is fictional, but her reaction reveals the intensity of her devotion. It’s less about doubt and more  about the fear of losing something that feels irreplaceable. 

However, the album’s greatest strength is also its biggest limitation. 

Yet perhaps that uniformity is the point. 

True love, as Mai presents it, isn’t disruptive. It isn’t mind games or emotional whiplash. It’s comfortable. It's a  partnership. It’s choosing someone every day and feeling chosen in return. The reciprocity of love and the need  to depend on one another is highlighted on '100', "It's a give and take 'causе you do it for me/...Baby, love is a  deal". On this record Mai wisely metaphorically sings about how she can pick up where her partner falls short,  and vice versa, to ensure that between her and her partner they are always at 100. In that sense, Do You Still 

Love Me? mirrors the stability it celebrates. It’s not thrilling in a dramatic sense, but it is sincere. And this sincerity  radiates beautifully from every line. 

For listeners deep in their own relationships, those who understand the quiet joy of building a life with someone,  this album may feel like home. For others craving tension, conflict, or sonic experimentation, it may feel too safe. 

But safety, after all, is exactly what Ella Mai is singing about. 

Image Credit: Jordan Perez

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'There Goes My Heart' 

Produced by Mustard, the album opener begins with delicate piano and finger snaps before 808s swell into a  fuller chorus. It’s subtle but effective mirroring the emotional surrender at its core. “No more second-guessin', I  won't fight it in the end / You captured my heart, you win” encapsulates the track’s thesis: conceding to love after  years of guardedness. There’s irony in her framing it as a loss, only for the rest of the album to prove it was a  victory all along. 

'My Mind' 

Soft percussion underpins one of the album’s purest moments of devotion. “No, I wasn't on the hunt to go find /  All of my wants and needs combined… I'd follow you blind” speaks on the absence of doubt in a partner due to  their consistent efforts and proof of being able to lead. It’s about the kind of trust that allows you to rest in  someone’s intentions without fear. 

'Might Just' 

The album’s most dramatic moment, ‘Might Just’ reveals the intensity beneath the calm, as we face what some  may deem as Mai dangerously in love. In a dream-fuelled cheating scenario, Mai threatens chaos with, “I’ll burn  this whole thing down, baby”, yet punctuates every warning with tenderness. It highlights the duality of deep love:  the same depth that nurtures can also wound.

'Bonus' 

One of the project’s more uptempo offerings, ‘Bonus’ injects understated sensuality. The flirtation is controlled  rather than overt, with lines like “You are so on to something… I'm sprung on all of ya” delivered with quiet  confidence. Even at her most seductive, restraint defines the mood. 

'First Day' 

‘First Day’ captures the album’s enduring honeymoon energy. “Baby, you been ’bout me since the day we met…  I linked you once and never left” reflects a love that hasn’t dulled with time. Years in, and she still sounds newly  enamoured singing that she is, “just as pressed, obsessed, I'm on your body/ ...Nothing's changed". 

Ultimately, Do You Still Love Me? favours emotional consistency over sonic risk. It doesn’t stretch Ella Mai  beyond her comfort zone, but perhaps that’s the point. She sounds exactly where she wants to be, so the  restraint feels intentional. While it may lack the tempo shifts or experimentation heard on Ella Mai and Heart On  My Sleeve, its earnestness is undeniable. This is a record for the settled, not the searching and in that space,  Ella Mai delivers with conviction.