Photo: G. Love by Joe Navas
Today, GRAMMY-nominated alternative blues/hip-hop artist G. Love has shared his new single “Mississippi,” the next preview from his forthcoming album Philadelphia Mississippi, due out June 24 via Philadelphonic Records/Thirty Tigers. The intoxicating blues track features Speech, Alvin Youngblood Hart and R.L. Boyce, bringing together four different voices to reflect on the state’s painful past and rich cultural legacy.
Listen to “Mississippi”
Pre-order Philadelphia Mississippi HERE
“It’s hill country blues meets the golden age of hip-hop on ‘Mississippi,’” shares G. Love. “It’s the quintessential hip-hop blues track with a greasy lowdown groove laid down by Philly legend Chuck Treece, Alvin Youngblood Hart and producer Luther Dickinson, with epic vocal performances by Speech of Arrested Development, hill country blues master R.L. Boyce, Alvin and myself. Each lyricist tackles their own personal feelings and emotions on the history of Mississippi and the blues it gave birth to, with Boyce crying throughout… ‘Po Po Mississippi.'”
This follows the playful “Laughing In The Sunshine” which was featured over at American Songwriter and “Love From Philly” (feat. Schoolly D, Chuck Treece and Trenton Ayers), a signature dose of hip-hop and the blues that garnered support from outlets like Guitar Player, Relix and The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Philadelphia Mississippi was produced by North Mississippi All-Stars’ Luther Dickinson (son of Jim Dickinson who produced G. Love’s sophomore album Coast to Coast Motel) and bridges both sides of G. Love’s eclectic career, mixing old school Hill Country and Delta Blues with new school hip-hop and funk. These 13 songs are loose, spontaneous and written on the fly in the studio during improvisatory fits of inspiration. The freewheeling performances bring together a slew of special guests from blues torchbearers like Alvin Youngblood Hart, Cam Kimbrough, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Jontavious Willis, R.L. Boyce and Trenton Ayers, rap icons Schoolly D, Freddie Foxx and Speech from Arrested Development, to ace musicians such as fifemaster Sharde Thomas and GRAMMY-nominated Southern Avenue drummer/singer Tikyra Jackson.
“I grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but I’ve spent my entire life steeped in the music of the Delta,” he explains, “so the idea that there was this whole other Philadelphia down there always fascinated me. For the last thirty years, I’ve wanted to make a pilgrimage—not just a musical one, but a spiritual one—to the heart of the blues, and that’s exactly what this album is.”
G. Love’s upcoming album Philadelphia Mississippi will be available as a limited edition NFT. After purchasing the initial “Origin” NFT, token holders will be airdropped a second NFT which unlocks both a downloadable and streaming version of the new record, as well as a 180-gram vinyl. A limited number of token holders will be randomly selected to win special edition vinyl pressings, ticket bundles, and more. Recently, G. Love stopped by Pop Dust’s It’s Real With Jordan and Demi podcast to discuss venturing into the NFT space, staying creative and his new music.
G. Love will be touring throughout the year as a solo performer, with a new rotating cast of players called The Juice, or with his longtime trio G. Love and Special Sauce. Beginning on July 15 he will hit the road solo for a national tour supporting O.A.R. and Dispatch. Find a full list of tour dates below or at philadelphonic.com.
Tour Dates:
6/11 – Annapolis, MD – Bands in the Sands +
6/24 – Des Moines, IA – Des Moines Art Festival %
6/25 – Rochester, NY – Rochester Int’l Jazz Festival %
7/3 – Scranton, PA – The Peach Music Festival +
7/8 – Peoria, IL – Lakeview Park
7/9 – Jay, VT – Jeezum Crow Festival %
7/12 – Harwich, MA – Cape Cod Jazz Festival
7/15 – Mesa, AZ – Mesa Amphitheatre #
7/16 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium #
7/17 – San Diego, CA – Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre #
7/19 – Paso Robles, CA – Vina Robles Amphitheatre #
7/20 – Rohnert Park, CA – SOMO Concerts #
7/22 – Bend, OR – Hayden Homes Amphitheater #
7/23 – Redmond, WA – Marymoor Park #
7/24 – Bonner, MT – KettleHouse Amphitheater #
7/26 – Whitefish, MT – The Remington Bar
7/28 – Nampa, ID – Ford Idaho Center Amphitheatre #
7/29 – Salt Lake City, UT – Red Butte Garden #
7/30 – Denver, CO – Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre #
7/31 – Breckenridge, CO – Riverwalk Center
8/3 – Kansas City, MO – The Record Bar
8/4 – Memphis, TN – The Crosstown Theater
8/5 – Atlanta, GA – Coca-Cola Roxy #
8/6 – Nashville, TN – Ascend Amphitheater #
8/7 – Columbus, OH – KEMBA Live! #
8/9 – Indianapolis, IN – TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park #
8/10 – St. Louis, MO – St. Louis Music Park #
8/12 – Cleveland, OH – Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica #
8/13 – Highland Park, IL – Ravinia Festival #
8/14 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill #
8/15 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE #
8/18 – Philadelphia, PA – TD Pavilion at the Mann #
8/19 – Gilford, NH – Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion #
8/20 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center #
8/21 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center #
8/23 – Lewiston, NY – Artpark #
8/25 – Bridgeport, CT – Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater #
8/26 – Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavillion #
8/27 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater #
8/28 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center #
8/30 – Asheville, NC – Salvage Station #
8/31 – Charlotte, NC – Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheater #
9/1 – Isle of Palms, SC – The Windjammer
9/2 – Virginia Beach, VA – Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheatre #
9/3 – Wilmington, NC – Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park #
9/4 – St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre #
9/8 – Austin, TX – ACL Live at The Moody Theater #
9/9 – Houston, TX – The Lawn at White Oak Music Hall #
9/10 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory #
+ G. Love & The Juice
% G. Love & Special Sauce
# G. Love solo supporting O.A.R. and Dispatch
Philadelphia Mississippi Tracklist:
1) Love From Philly (feat. Chuck Treece, Schoolly D and Trenton Ayers)
2) Mississippi (feat. Speech, Alvin Youngblood Hart and R.L. Boyce)
3) My Ball (feat. Freddie Foxx and Jontavious Willis)
4) Guitar Man (feat. Christone “Kingfish” Ingram)
5) Kickin’
6) HipHopHarpin’ (feat. Alvin Youngblood Hart)
7) Laughing In The Sunshine
8) I Ain’t Living (feat. Tikyra Jackson)
9) Lemonades (feat. Cam Kimbrough, Luther Dickinson and Chuck Treece)
10) If My Mind Don’t Change (feat. Sharde Thomas)
11) Sauce Up! (feat. Trenton Ayers)
12) The Philly Sound
13) Shouts Out
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