Listen to a new song by Raury, see him at the Foundry

Hands down, one of the best new artists I saw at The Roots picnic this past Summer was Raury, a 19 year old from a small suburb outside of Atlanta who speaks his own musical language, informed by hip-hop, rock, folk, and R&B.

In May, 2014 WXPN featured Raury’s first single, “God’s Whisper,” from his Indigo Child EP as its Gotta Hear Song of the Week.”. At the time, I wrote that “God’s Whisper” was one of the most original sounding and celebratory songs I’ve heard in a long time, a magical tune that was diverse and soulful. Fast forward to the Roots Picnic, a year later, and Raury, making his first Philly appearance, brought the house down with a dynamic seven piece band and a performance that drew the crowd in to his universal musical mystical brew. With his shirt off, and slinging his guitar, he worked his band through Prince-like pacing. Confident and well executed, it was exciting to watch.

Raury’s highly new album, All We Need, is out this tomorrow. It features appearances from Big K.R.I.T., RZA, Tom Morello, and Key! with production by Raury, Malay, Danger Mouse, Jacknife Lee, Daytrip, and DJ Kahlil. Jon Caramanica, who reviews the album in the New York Times writes that All We Need “is full of confidently expressed delicateness. This is folk music refracted through hip-hop sensibilities, an aesthetic that suggests that not all the post-rap tributaries have been explored yet.” It’s music for an integrated i-Tunes economy, as seen through the bright muse of a talented young man.

Below, listen to a new song, “demo 1: the sea,” a gorgeous acoustic song, that showcases yet another side Raury. See him live at the Foundry at the Fillmore Philly on Thursday, October 29th. Go here for tickets and more information about the show.