ItsNotYouItsMe “Come Thru Thursday Vocals” features stellar tracks from jazzman Gregory Porter and rock icons, Green Day!
“All Rise is the studio follow-up to 2017’s Nat King Cole & Me, which debuted at No. 3 in the UK. The new set sees Porter returning to his own, original songwriting, with heart-on-sleeve lyrics reflecting everyday philosophy set to his usual stirring combination of jazz, soul, blues, and gospel.
‘All Rise’ is produced by Troy Miller, whose credits include Laura Mvula, Jamie Cullum and Emeli Sandé, and represents Porter’s continuing evolution to the most emphatic yet intimate sound of his career.
“Yes, you could say that I went big,” says Gregory about the track, which features his regular, longtime bandmates, a hand-picked horn section and a ten-voice choir. “For me, it’s the message of walking into this life and having some fear and self-doubt, and the point where you grab onto something that you know is real, the silent and real things, the truth…once you can wrap onto the truth then this fearlessness comes.”
All Rise continues a story of unbroken success that began with Porter’s Liquid Spirit debut of 2013, which won the Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album. “I was soothed by my voice as a child,” he says, reflecting on his huge popularity, “and I think that’s the same thing others get from it. I’m trying to heal myself with these songs.”
In 2019, the singer also launched and hosted his own podcast series, The Hang, which featured such guests as Annie Lennox, Jeff Goldblum, Don Was and British-Jamaican soul singer Celeste, subsequently named as the BBC’s Sound Of 2020. Porter also became the first celebrity to sing a lullaby on CBeebies Bedtime Stories.
Last September, Porter announced a 13-date tour of the UK to take place throughout May 2020. It will include four nights at London’s Royal Albert Hall, scene of his One Night Only album released in late 2018, on 19, 20, 22 and 23 May. It’s also newly announced that he will be guest curator at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival, which he plays on 5 May. His selections include US vocalist-composer Lizz Wright, Chicago-based drummer-producer Makaya McCraven, American trumpeter Keyon Harrold and post-bop saxophonist-composer Gary Bartz. ” – udiscovermusic.com
“Green Day find themselves trapped in a tangled web of screens in the video for their new song, “Oh Yeah!” from their upcoming album, Father of All…, out February 7th via Reprise/Warner Records.
Directed by Malia James, the clip opens with drummer Tré Cool introducing a low-budget YouTube tutorial on how to play “Oh Yeah!” which, it turns out, is being watched by a man in his car who accidentally hits frontman Billie Joe Armstrong while pulling into a grocery store parking lot.
Rather than check in on Armstrong, the fan immediately starts recording a video, setting off a chain-reaction of virality; people watching people do tons of oddball stuff (Green Day bassist Mike Dirnt, for instance, appears as a blasé security guard too busy staring at his phone to do his job).
The “Oh Yeah!” video complements the synth-tinged stomper, which finds Armstrong grappling with celebrity at a time of great turmoil: “Everybody is a star,” he sings, “Got my money and I’m feeling kinda low/Everybody got a scar/Ain’t it funny how we’re running out of hope?”
In the YouTube description for “Oh Yeah!” Green Day noted that their track samples Joan Jett’s cover of “Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)” from her debut, Bad Reputation. The song was originally written by Gary Glitter, the arena rocker and convicted sex offender, so Green Day has promised to donate all royalties from “Oh Yeah!” to the International Justice Mission and the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network.
“We appreciate Green Day for thinking of survivors when releasing their new single,” RAINN Press Secretary Erinn Robinson tells Rolling Stone. “The proceeds from this song will help us continue to provide survivors of sexual violence and their loved ones with the help they need and deserve.”
Melissa Russell, regional president of IJM North America, says in a statement to Rolling Stone: “We are really grateful to Green Day for this unexpected surprise, especially during Human Trafficking Awareness Month. IJM works to end violence against women and children globally, and it will take all of us to end trafficking and violence in our lifetime.”
“Oh Yeah!” follows the previously released Father of All… title track, which arrived last September. Green Day will embark on a massive summer tour with Fall Out Boy and Weezer this summer, with the North American leg launching July 17th in Seattle.” – Rollingstone.com
