Throughout the recording of the mixtape, ”Reverie” was self-composed, engineered, and mastered entirely in Tinashe’s bedroom.<ref name=”booklet” /><ref name=”PRWeb”>{{cite web |url=http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/9/prweb9873563.htm |title=Tinashe – 19-Year Old Singing Sensation – to Release her Sophomore Mixtape, ”Reverie”, September 6, 2012 |publisher=PRWeb |date=2012-09-06 |access-date=2012-09-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810223821/http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/9/prweb9873563.htm |archive-date=August 10, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Payne |first=Chris |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/tinashe-premieres-who-am-i-working-for-video-watch-1551366/ |title=Tinashe Premiers ‘Who Am I Working For?’ Video: Watch |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=March 12, 2013 |access-date=November 29, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203124708/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/tinashe-premieres-who-am-i-working-for-video-watch-1551366/ |archive-date=December 3, 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref> Even though she was an executive producer for the mixtape, Tinashe also worked with various producers from her first project, ”[[In Case We Die (Tinashe album)|In Case We Die]]” (2012), such as K-BeatZ, Wes Tarte and B. Hendrixx as well as new producers, BMarz of the Hills Club, [[Nez & Rio]], [[Best Kept Secret (production team)|Best Kept Secret]], Troobadore, Roc & Mayne, JRB the Producer and [[XXYYXX]].<ref name=”booklet” />
Throughout the recording of the mixtape, ”Reverie” was self-composed, engineered, and mastered entirely in Tinashe’s bedroom.<ref name=”booklet” /><ref name=”PRWeb”>{{cite web |url=http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/9/prweb9873563.htm |title=Tinashe – 19-Year Old Singing Sensation – to Release her Sophomore Mixtape, ”Reverie”, September 6, 2012 |publisher=PRWeb |date=2012-09-06 |access-date=2012-09-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810223821/http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/9/prweb9873563.htm |archive-date=August 10, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Payne |first=Chris |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/tinashe-premieres-who-am-i-working-for-video-watch-1551366/ |title=Tinashe Premiers ‘Who Am I Working For?’ Video: Watch |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=March 12, 2013 |access-date=November 29, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203124708/https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/tinashe-premieres-who-am-i-working-for-video-watch-1551366/ |archive-date=December 3, 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref> Even though she was an executive producer for the mixtape, Tinashe also worked with various producers from her first project, ”[[In Case We Die (Tinashe album)|In Case We Die]]” (2012), such as K-BeatZ, Wes Tarte and B. Hendrixx as well as new producers, BMarz of the Hills Club, [[Nez & Rio]], [[Best Kept Secret (production team)|Best Kept Secret]], Troobadore, Roc & Mayne, JRB the Producer and [[XXYYXX]].<ref name=”booklet” />
==Music and theme==
==Music and ==
According to [[Billboard (magazine)|”Billboard”]]’s Ashley Lyle, “Stargazing” explores themes of “unrequited love”, with Tinashe expressing a desire for emotional reciprocity.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Lyle |first=Ashley |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/star-songs-weeknd-beastie-boys-corinne-bailey-rae-7534250/ |title=From ‘Like a Star’ to ‘Starboy’, Space Out With These 21 Starry Songs |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=October 13, 2016 |access-date=December 5, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003115803/https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/star-songs-weeknd-beastie-boys-corinne-bailey-rae-7534250/ |archive-date=October 3, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref>
According to [[Billboard (magazine)|”Billboard”]]’s Ashley Lyle, “Stargazing” explores themes of “unrequited love”, with Tinashe expressing a desire for emotional reciprocity.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Lyle |first=Ashley |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/star-songs-weeknd-beastie-boys-corinne-bailey-rae-7534250/ |title=From ‘Like a Star’ to ‘Starboy’, Space Out With These 21 Starry Songs |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=October 13, 2016 |access-date=December 5, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003115803/https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/star-songs-weeknd-beastie-boys-corinne-bailey-rae-7534250/ |archive-date=October 3, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref>
The booklet opens with the mixtape’s cover art, followed by pages that pair each track’s lyrics with different photographs of the singer. Near its end, a “Thank You” section features Tinashe’s acknowledgements, in which she notes that she “wrote and recorded Reverie by myself in my bedroom” and extends gratitude to her fans, collaborators, management team, family, and label staff. The booklet concludes with a final page listing the mixtape’s tracks.<ref name=”booklet” />
==Title==
==Title==
2012 mixtape by Tinashe
| Reverie | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Released | September 6, 2012 |
| Recorded | 2012 |
| Length | 42:22 |
| Label | Self-released |
| Producer | |
|
|
Reverie is the second mixtape by American recording artist Tinashe. It was released on September 6, 2012 via her official website. The mixtape follows her debut mixtape In Case We Die (2012), which came after a four-year stint as lead singer of dance-pop group The Stunners and her array of non-album singles, including a collaboration with producers OFM, “Artificial People”, in 2011. Reverie was preceded by three singles: “Stargazing”, “Ecstasy”, and “Who Am I Working For?”.
As an executive producer, Tinashe enlisted a variety of musical producers to work with her on the mixtape, including Wes Tarte, BMarz of the Hills Club, Nez & Rio, Best Kept Secret, B. Hendrixx, Troobadore, K-BeatZ, Daughter, and XXYYXX. Besides being executive producer of the mixtape, Tinashe also wrote all of the mixtape’s songs.
Reverie received positive reviews from music critics, who complimented the mixtape’s “spacey beats and Middle Eastern influences”, with some critics calling it highly anticipated and a must-listen and praising Tinashe’s vocals. Other critics compared the artistic style of the mixtape to that of Jhene Aiko, The Weeknd and Aaliyah. In addition, the album’s title track was used during a scene of the American television program Love & Hip Hop.[1]
Background and release
[edit]
On December 20, 2011, Tinashe announced that she would release a debut mixtape, titled In Case We Die, in 2012.[2] After its release, Tinashe signed RCA Records.[3] On August 5, 2012, Tinashe announced that she was ready to release her second project, titled Reverie.[4] The official cover art was revealed via Instagram on August 13, 2012.[5] “Stargazing” was released as the lead single from the mixtape,[6] on August 21, 2012.
Throughout the recording of the mixtape, Reverie was self-composed, engineered, and mastered entirely in Tinashe’s bedroom.[7][3][8] Even though she was an executive producer for the mixtape, Tinashe also worked with various producers from her first project, In Case We Die (2012), such as K-BeatZ, Wes Tarte and B. Hendrixx as well as new producers, BMarz of the Hills Club, Nez & Rio, Best Kept Secret, Troobadore, Roc & Mayne, JRB the Producer and XXYYXX.[7]
Music and packaging
[edit]
According to Billboard‘s Ashley Lyle, “Stargazing” explores themes of “unrequited love”, with Tinashe expressing a desire for emotional reciprocity.[9]
The booklet opens with the mixtape’s cover art, followed by pages that pair each track’s lyrics with different photographs of the singer. Near its end, a “Thank You” section features Tinashe’s acknowledgements, in which she notes that she “wrote and recorded Reverie by myself in my bedroom” and extends gratitude to her fans, collaborators, management team, family, and label staff. The booklet concludes with a final page listing the mixtape’s tracks.[7]
My second project, “Reverie”, took a turn for the political. I notice that as the presidential election in the United States draws ever nearer, people become tremendously caught up in the Hollywood drama of it all — and automatically take on, without much consideration, all of the views and the opinions of “the right or the left”. Thus, resulting in a disconnect from our real political duties as citizens of this Earth, and a neglect for the true issues human beings around the globe face every single day. We are so caught up in our media, in our jobs, in our gossip, and in our consuming that we genuinely feel like we don’t have the time or energy to bother ourselves with the tribulations of nations near and far. This… is a synthetic world many of us live in today — a dream, if you will.
Tinashe later elaborated on the conceptual direction of the mixtape and the choice of the French title Reverie, explaining that the project emerged from her growing awareness of political apathy and media saturation during the U.S. presidential election cycle. She reflected on how easily people absorbed the polarized rhetoric of “the right or the left” without deeper consideration, and how this distracted from global issues and the everyday responsibilities of citizenship. Tinashe emphasized that much of modern life is consumed by entertainment, work, gossip, and constant media intake, creating what she saw as a disconnect from real-world concerns.[10]
As she summarized on her official blog, Reverie was shaped by observing a society “caught up in the Hollywood drama” of politics and detached from “the true issues human beings around the globe face every single day”, concluding that many people live in “a synthetic world … a dream, if you will”.[10]
Reviews for Reverie were generally positive. The comments on DatPiff was positive,[11] receiving promotional space on the main page of the site and peaking at number five on the most downloaded chart upon the first day of its release.[12] It also drew comparisons to Aaliyah via fans on Twitter.[13] MuuMuse noted “Stargazing” as “absolutely mesmerizing”, and also compared her to indie band The xx.[14] Global Grind called the tape “highly anticipated” as well as classifying it as a “must listen”.[15] Denver Sean of B. Scott noted “BMarz of the Hills Club’s flawless production” of the first single, saying “‘Stargazing’, takes a similar approach to, Noah ’40’ Shebib‘s productions, but it’s as if he strapped one to a rocket and shot it into the galaxy”.[6]
All tracks were written by Tinashe Kachingwe.
| Title | Producer(s) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | “Fear Not” | Wes Tarte | 2:33 |
| 2. | “Stargazing” | BMarz of the Hills Club | 3:45 |
| 3. | “Yours” | Legacy | 4:37 |
| 4. | “Slow” | Nez & Rio | 4:28 |
| 5. | “Another Me” | 4:09 | |
| 6. | “Come When I Call” | Wes Tarte | 4:34 |
| 7. | “Illusions (Interlude)” | Tinashe | 0:45 |
| 8. | “Reverie” | B. Hendrixx | 3:57 |
| 9. | “I’m Selfish” | Troobadore | 2:42 |
| 10. | “Ecstasy” | K-BeatZ | 3:23 |
| 11. | “Who Am I Working For?” | Nez & Rio | 3:47 |
| 12. | “Let You Love Me” (XXYYXX remix) | XXYYXX | 3:48 |
| Total length: | 42:22 | ||
- Credits were adapted from digital booklet.[7]
- Track 5 samples the song “Love” by Daughter.
- ^ Graham, Mark (March 25, 2013). “Get A Free MP3 Of Tinashe’s “Reverie” (As Featured On VH1’s Love & Hip Hop)”. VH1. Archived from the original on March 29, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2025.
- ^ Tinashe Interview. LozzaMusic.com. December 22, 2011. Archived from the original (video) on March 16, 2014. Retrieved December 5, 2025 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b “Tinashe – 19-Year Old Singing Sensation – to Release her Sophomore Mixtape, Reverie, September 6, 2012″. PRWeb. September 6, 2012. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
- ^ Tinashe (August 6, 2012). “New mixtape coming this month. Single dropping soon. Be on the lookout…” Archived from the original on December 5, 2025. Retrieved November 29, 2025 – via Facebook.
- ^ Tinashe [@tinashenow]; (August 14, 2012). “My new mixtape cover #Reverie (Coming Soon)”. Archived from the original on December 5, 2025. Retrieved December 5, 2025 – via Instagram.
- ^ a b Sean, Denver (August 29, 2012). “Tinashe – Stargazing [New Music]”. Lovebscott. Archived from the original on December 7, 2024. Retrieved December 8, 2012.
- ^ a b c d Reverie (digital booklet). Tinashe. 2012.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Payne, Chris (March 12, 2013). “Tinashe Premiers ‘Who Am I Working For?’ Video: Watch”. Billboard. Archived from the original on December 3, 2024. Retrieved November 29, 2025.
- ^ Lyle, Ashley (October 13, 2016). “From ‘Like a Star’ to ‘Starboy’, Space Out With These 21 Starry Songs”. Billboard. Archived from the original on October 3, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
- ^ a b c Tinashe (August 17, 2012). “The Inspiration Behind my forthcoming mix tape, “Reverie”“. Tinashe Official Website. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2012 – via Tumblr.
- ^ “Tinashe – Reverie / / Free Mixtape”. DatPiff. September 6, 2012. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
- ^ “The Authority in Free Mixtapes”. DatPiff. September 6, 2012. Archived from the original on September 6, 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
- ^ Stern, Bradley [@MuuMuse] (August 28, 2012). “@_DenverSean Yeah! For sure. A little of the new Aaliyah, too. Here for all of this” (Tweet). Archived from the original on December 5, 2025. Retrieved September 6, 2012 – via Twitter.
- ^ Stern, Bradley (August 28, 2012). “Tinashe Premiers Track from Upcoming Reverie Mixtape, “Stargazing”“. MuuMuse. Archived from the original on April 26, 2025. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
- ^ Lewis, Brittany (September 7, 2012). “Tinashe Releases Reverie Mixtape (Download)”. Global Grind. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2012.
- ^ “Tinashe – Reverie – CD (Mixtape), 2015 [r6855301]”. Discogs. Archived from the original on December 5, 2025. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
- ^ “Music”. Tinashe Official Store. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
