If you want to talk about trendsetters, look no further than disco-funk duo Tuxedo. Jake One (producer behind De La Soul, Drake, The Weeknd and more) first teamed up with accomplished solo singer Mayer Hawthorne for their eponymous 2015 debut, setting a major landmark in modern production for their now-oft-replicated ’70s and ’80s-inspired sound. On 2017’s Tuxedo II the duo explored a more ’90s G-Funk-influenced style, but strayed from the genre norm of gritty lyrics in favor of promoting positivity and inclusiveness.
Tomorrow the soul pop saga continues with Tuxedo III, a full-length that combines Hawthorne and One’s shared eight-Grammy-nominated knowledge and skills for some ideal head-bobbin’ and summer cruisin’ music. Tuxedo join us in Studio 1A Tuesday after next, the same night they play at Empire Control Room, and to ensure that you’re not faking the funk before the weekend, start grooving to this retro-future-funk anthem, “The Tuxedo Way”!
–Jack Anderson
