R&B / Soul
Thundercat is set to release his new album It Is What It Is on Brainfeeder Records on April 3, 2020, and shares the first music; 'Black Qualls (featuring Steve Lacy and Steve Arrington). The album, produced by Flying Lotus and Thundercat, features musical contributions from Ty Dolla $ign, Childish Gambino, Lil B, Kamasi Washington, Steve Lacy, Steve Arrington, BADBADNOTGOOD, Louis Cole and Zack Fox. It Is What It Is follows his game-changing third album Drunk (2017). That record completed his transition from virtuoso bassist to bonafide star and cemented his reputation as a unique voice that transcends genre. 'This album is about love, loss, life and the ups and downs that come with that,' Bruner says. 'It's a bit tongue-in-cheek, but at different points in life you come across places that you don't necessarily understand' some things just aren't meant to be understood.'
From the first second of Kandace Springs' new album — as those warm, hand-plucked bass notes fill the air — you know you've arrived at something different. And once she starts singing, well, it's pretty clear The Women Who Raised Me exists apart from the normal rules that govern space, time, and talent. While 2018's Indigo LP found the Nashville singer-pianist using modern production to bend sound into new genre forms in collaboration with Karriem Riggins, this set adheres sonically to jazz while Springs travels back and forth across a near-century of music. While the feel is as rich and complex as our host's voice, the concept is simple. Springs covers the women who inspired her while she was growing up, putting her own spin on songs associated with a dozen of the greatest female vocalists of all-time: Ella Fitzgerald, Roberta Flack, Astrud Gilberto, Lauryn Hill, Billie Holiday, Norah Jones, Diana Krall, Carmen McRae, Bonnie Raitt, Sade, Nina Simone, and Dusty Springfield.
When I Get Home is the new album from Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter and visual artist Solange Knowles. This release represents the next phase in Solange's evolution as an artist, and is the follow up to her critically acclaimed 2016 album A Seat at the Table. The album is an exploration of origin. It asks the question how much of ourselves do we bring with us versus leave behind in our evolution. The artist returned to Third Ward Houston to answer this. When I Get Home was written, performed, and executive produced by Solange, and includes contributions from Tyler, the Creator, Chassol, Playboi Carti, Standing on the Corner, Panda Bear, Devin the Dude, The-Dream, and more. It also features samples from Third Ward's own Debbie Allen, Phylicia Rashad, poet Pat Parker, and Scarface.
Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter, Jessie Reyez will unveil her debut album Before Love Came To Kill Us on March 27th. The album includes the RIAA Gold-certified single "Imported" with 6LACK and capitalizes on the release of the acclaimed Kiddo and Being Human in Public EPs which have garnered more than 750 million combined global streams to date. The Toronto-born, Colombian-bred powerhouse has racked up award nominations and wins including Juno Awards (Breakthrough Artist winner), MTV Video Music Awards, BET Awards, iHeart Radio Music Awards and more. She's also flexed her songwriting prowess on records for other artists including Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa's "One Kiss", Calvin Harris & Sam Smith "Promises", Normani's "Slow Down" and more. Her list of collaborators include Eminem, Daniel Caesar, 6LACK, Kehlani, Karol G, Tainy, Pink $weats and more.
Enhanced with PlayARt - Augmented Reality
Craft Recordings is thrilled to announce the release of a vinyl box set celebrating one of music’s greatest gospel and soul groups, The Staple Singers. Set for a December 6th release date, Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection presents all of the group’s studio albums released on the iconic Memphis label, spanning 1968–1974, and features the Staples’ biggest hits, including “I’ll Take You There,” “Respect Yourself” and “If You’re Ready (Come Go with Me).” The six studio albums were cut from the original analog masters by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl. The final, seventh disc offers rarities, non-album singles and several live recordings from the legendary 1972 Wattstax music festival. The seven discs come in heavyweight 180-gram vinylpressed at Memphis Record Pressing. Housed in a slipcase, the collection also includes a deluxe booklet with archival photos and new liner notes from American music specialist and curator Levon Williams (formerly of the Stax Museum and the National Museum of African American Music), and folklorist, ethnomusicologist and writer Dr. Langston Wilkins. The complete collection will also be released digitally, and the six studio albums will be available in hi-res 24-bit/192 kHz and 24-bit/96 kHz formats for the first time.
Long awaited 2nd album. Young soul sensation adopts a more contemporary R&B approach while staying true to his signature style.
The Emancipation of Mimi, Mariah Carey's 10th album released through Island Records on April 12, 2005 and became her highest-selling release in the US in a decade. This fifteenth anniversary edition includes hits like "We Belong Together, " "Shake It Off, " "It's Like That, " "Don't Forget About Us." The album features collaborations with Jermaine Dupri, Snoop Dogg, Twista, Nelly and Pharrell Williams. The 2LP standard black vinyl version features four new bonus tracks.
Remastered 2LP
Prince’s iconic album,1999, has been remastered for the very first time
The new remastered 2LP pressed on purple vinyl for the initial run only
“I didn’t want to do a double album, but I just kept writing... I always compare songwriting to a girl walking in the door. You don’t know what she’s going to look like, but all of a sudden she’s there.” Prince, November 1982
(Minneapolis, MN – September 10, 2019) – Considered one of the most iconic and influential double albums in rock history, Prince’s 1999 was released at a major turning point in the artist’s career. After years of being relegated to the R&B charts, he experienced his first true crossover moment with the mega-hits “Little Red Corvette,” “1999,” and “Delirious,“ shattering barriers with his revolutionary blend of rock, funk, R&B and new wave pop, and making history by being one of the first black artists to have their videos in heavy rotation on MTV.
The songs included on 1999 were just a small sampling of the work that was pouring out of Prince in the intensely prolific period of 1981 and 1982. In addition to his own material, he was also working up tracks that he would give to his protégés Vanity 6 and The Time, and recording dozens of songs that would be stored for possible later use, archiving them in his growing vault of unreleased material.
This November 29, The Prince Estate, in partnership with Warner Records, will reissue 1999 via all physical, digital and streaming partners, with the timeless album remastered for the very first time, along with 35 previously unreleased tracks from Prince’s legendary vault that showcase the creative flow Prince had tapped into during this era.
The reissue suite will be comprised of the following formats:
• Super Deluxe Edition (5CD+DVD / 10LP+DVD / audio-only download and streaming)
• Deluxe Edition (2CD / 4LP 180g vinyl / download and streaming)
• Remastered album (1CD / 2LP 180g Purple Vinyl / download and streaming)
The 1999 Super Deluxe Edition represents the deepest dive to date into Prince’s vault and includes a total of 65 audio tracks across five CDs and ten 180g vinyl records.
The Super Deluxe Edition brings fans all the audio material that Prince officially released in and around 1982, as well as 23 previously unissued studio tracks recorded between November 1981 and January 1983, and a complete live audio performance of the 1999 tour recorded at the late show (the second of two that day) in Detroit, MI on November 30, 1982.
In addition, both CD and vinyl sets also boast a brand-new DVD containing another complete, previously unreleased concert from the 1999 tour, recorded in multi-cam live at the Houston Summit on December 29, 1982.
The Super Deluxe Edition set also features Prince’s previously unseen handwritten lyrics for several songs from the era, including the hit “Little Red Corvette,” plus images of the analog tape reels from the vault and rare photography from Prince’s early ‘80s photographer, Allen Beaulieu. The Super Deluxe Edition is completed with brand-new liner notes by longtime Rolling Stone critic David Fricke, revered Guns N’ Roses bassist and author Duff McKagan, Minneapolis historian and radio host Andrea Swensson, and Prince scholar Duane Tudahl.
Fricke notes, “A landmark collection of vision, craft, and urgency – an unprecedented immersion in the frenetic momentum and private working world of Prince in 1981 and 1982, en route to the profound breakthrough of his fifth studio album, 1999.”
The 1999 Super Deluxe Edition shines a forensic light on the creative output of this truly unique musician, songwriter, producer, and performer at a pivotal point in his career and demonstrates why his unsurpassed body of work continues to generate so much love and passion around the world.
Limited double 180gm peach colored vinyl LP pressing. Prince's iconic album, Sign O' The Times, has been remastered for the very first time by Prince's original mastering engineer Bernie Grundman. Primarily recorded between the end of 1985 and beginning of 1987, the era saw the dissolution of his band The Revolution, the end of his engagement to Susannah Melvoin, and the creation (and ultimate abandonment) of the albums Dream Factory, Camille, and Crystal Ball. By the end of that period of transformation, Prince emerged with one of his most urgent and wide-ranging releases to date - an epochal double album that would be hailed as a creative, critical, and commercial triumph. Peach colored vinyl for initial run only, then reverting to black vinyl.
Charged up by gospel grandiosity, sun-kissed island grooves, and R&B soul, Nicole Bus wields such a voice. An empathetic writer, powerhouse vocalist, talented multi-instrumentalist, and impassioned performer, the Dutch-born multicultural songstress delivers a striking signature style on her 2019 debut for Roc Nation. It paved the way for her debut album, KAIROS, which Nicole co-executive-produced and co-produced along with Needlz who produced the entire album.
Lizzo’s Atlantic Records debut EP featuring the #1 hit single “Good As Hell.” Standard black vinyl version includes a coconut-scented scratch and sniff insert.
Rising superstar and multi-platinum singer Jacquees will release his second full-length R&B album, King of R&B, on December 20th on Cash Money Records. For the album, he attracted an A-list crop of collaborators, including Atlanta royalty T.I. who delivers an unforgettable verse on the aptly titled "King," Tory Lanez who lends his unmistakable vocals to "Risk It All." While Bluff City and Migos front-man Quavo appear on the heartfelt "All You Need."
Multi-platinum artist Trippie Redd defies conventions with lovelorn melodies and bulletproof rapping. Since emerging two years ago, Trippie has racked up platinum singles and 5 billion streams. His second official album ! is set to release on 8/09 (11/08 on Vinyl) featuring singles “Mac 10 (feat. Lil Baby and Lil Duke)” and “Under Enemy Arms” which alone drew over 32 million streams. The Source claimed, “[Under Enemy Arms] itself is a turn-up”. Features on ! also include Playboi Carti, The Game and Coi Leray.
Allen Stone’s “Building Balance” is his first new album in 4 years, spanning a time period spent figuring out how the old parts and the new parts of his universe were going to co-exist. For Building Balance he worked with Grammywinning producer Nasri as well as Jamie Lidell. Stone continues to draw inspiration from '70s funk and soul with current flexes, sitting amid D'Angelo in its sultrier moments, Stevie Wonder at its most melodic and the production of Mark Ronson at its most modern.