Through the past decade and a half of his career, New Orleans’ PJ Morton has shown some pretty colossal growth…and that’s putting it lightly. He’s been an ongoing keyboardist for Maroon 5 since 2010, has been taken on by Solange as her music director, and with ten Grammy nominations and a win for Best Traditional R&B Performance, Morton’s even got his own record label. You’ve seen Morton at the Super Bowl Half Time, The Tonight Show, NPR’s Tiny Desk, The Daily Show and sharing the stage with everyone from Stevie Wonder to Lil Wayne.
And while 2017’s Gumbo was originally slated to be PJ Morton’s solo career studio swan song, upon returning to his hometown he gained a fresh perspective on his identity and doubled down on what made him stand out in the first place: himself. With that, today marks the release of PJ Morton’s sixth full-length, Paul, a ten-track recorded in NOLA between sold out tour dates, and as the title suggests, this is one of purest offerings yet from PJ (who was born Paul Morton Jr.). Uplifting sounds of soul, jazz-fusion, R&B, funk, and pop make for a bold contrast against bleak societal observations and themes of struggle, injustice, oppression, and confrontation. Get started on Paul right now with the upbeat retro-inspired album opener, “READY”!
–Jack Anderson
