We plug to you singer, songwriter and musician PJ Morton with his most recent body of work, the 7 track EP titled Follow My First Mind (FMFM). PJ Morton recalls his musical upbringing in New Orleans where he was born and raised as having greatly influenced his musical style and allowed his talents to be early nurtured and developed. His first dive into music was with a band called Freestyle Nation which started right after Morton graduated from college. Over the years, the band went on to receive minimal recognition, however during this time Morton's stock as a songwriter/producer was beginning to rise in the industry and in no time, he already had a Grammy Award to his name.
The award was for his song writing and production credits on India Arie’s track "Interested". Following this, PJ went on to win Dove and Stellar awards as well for his songwriting and production dexterities. Collaborating with Gospel artist DeWayne Woods on the track "Let Go, Let God" saw Morton’s career sky rocket even further. Morton also teamed up with Academy Award-winning composer AR Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire) to work on the song "Saina" off the soundtrack to the 2009 summer flick Couples Retreat which features Vince Vaughn.
The award was for his song writing and production credits on India Arie’s track "Interested". Following this, PJ went on to win Dove and Stellar awards as well for his songwriting and production dexterities. Collaborating with Gospel artist DeWayne Woods on the track "Let Go, Let God" saw Morton’s career sky rocket even further. Morton also teamed up with Academy Award-winning composer AR Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire) to work on the song "Saina" off the soundtrack to the 2009 summer flick Couples Retreat which features Vince Vaughn.
Morton coined the phrase 'soulful pop' to describe his approach to music. I particularly like how he describes his sound as he states, “it’s sweet and sour, it’s chicken and waffles. It’s a hip hop bass line meshed with symphonies of stringed instruments, synthetic sounds intermingling with real instrumentation". He lists his influences to be world class pop icons - The Beatles and James Taylor - to soulful legends like Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway. Today, Morton is the keyboardist/vocalist for the band Maroon 5 and at the same time Young Money’s (YMCMB) most recent signed solo act.
The first track I plug is the ‘heavily’ Organ-influenced track "Heavy" which features fellow Maroon 5 band mate, Adam Levine. We hear PJ Morton turn on his funk side on this track which we can somewhat attribute to being influenced by his guest as "Heavy" is composed similarly to sounds of Maroon 5. The song instrumentally features a head bopping rhythm accompanied by an electric guitar arrangement that can heard throughout the track. This is probably the most upbeat song on the whole EP, not to say the other songs aren’t as good as this one.
Showing the slow and sultry side of PJ Morton on the Follow My First Mind EP is the track "Built For Love". I most especially like how this track starts out, emulating sounds straight out of the 80s with a Jazz feel to it. The song is a true and well conveyed love story depicting how both partners are "built for love" professing their feelings for one another and willingness to work through any issues. Sonically - with a milieu of gentle drums, soft keyboards and guitars - and lyrically the song resonates simplicity, however with songstress Jazmine Sullivan lending her breathtaking vocals on the song, it does make for one of the worthy R&B duets on this EP.
I guess having a project without featuring a member of your new label would be all kinds of wrong and so, on the track "Lover", PJ Morton turns on the more commercial sounding side of himself with some help from label boss Lil Wayne. If nothing, the chorus - as repetitive as it gets - is catchy and sticks with you even after the song stops playing. Lil Wayne jumps in on the third verse in his true classic style adding his southern rap kick to the R&B track.
Morton isn’t exactly new to the game yet his name is not that well known in the industry. One example would be his last solo effort, his fourth album titled Walk Alone. The album was acclaimed critically but did not receive enough commercial buzz. I do however suspect all that is going to change after now being associated with two of the top teams in the industry. What drew me to listen to PJ Morton was actually the cover of his EP. And after finding out about his two most recent affiliations, I was intrigued to find out what could come off this eccentric artist. From R&B to Soul to Funk, PJ Morton can do it all. The other tracks off the EP are great listens as well and I definitely recommend Follow My First Mind to anyone. Click the download link below for your free copy and get to listening.
Download: PJ Morton - Follow My First Mind (FMFM)
TemiY
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