Photo Credit: Justen Williams
February 18, 2022—Trombone Shorty will release his highly anticipated new studio album Lifted April 29 on Blue Note Records. For his first album in five years, the born-and-bred New Orleans musical icon and ambassador harnesses the raw power and exhilarating grooves of his legendary live shows, over ten tracks recorded at his own Buckjump Studio with producer Chris Seefried (Fitz and the Tantrums, Andra Day). Shorty and his bandmates crash through funk, soul and psychedelic rock with transcendent performances, set to bold songwriting that explores grit and determination in hard times. The album features special guests Gary Clark, Jr., Lauren Daigle, and the New Breed Brass Band.
The run-up to Lifted kicks off today with “Come Back,” an infectious lovelorn plea over a hip-hop beat with hard rock energy. Though it’s a reckoning with loss and regret, “Come Back”—like much of the album—conveys a staunch resilience.
Listen to “Come Back” here: https://tsoa.lnk.to/ComeBack
The Lifted album title and cover photo references the relationship Trombone Shorty had with his mother, Lois Nelson Andrews. In dedicating the album to her memory he says, “She passed recently, but she continued to inspire me right up until she transitioned, and that’s why I put a picture of her holding me up at a second line on the cover of this album. She lifted me up my whole life.”
Shorty continues, “I think Lifted is the closest we’ve ever gotten to bottling up the live show and putting it on a record. This time around I told everybody to really cut loose, to perform like they were onstage at a festival.”
He speaks from experience: Shorty’s live performances have taken him to six continents, the GRAMMY Awards telecast, the White House (multiple times), and major tours with everyone from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to the Rolling Stones. This May he will perform at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, where he’s taken over the fest’s hallowed final set; during Mardi Gras he will ride on his own float leading the Krewe of Freret parade and perform at the after-party gala dubbed “Shorty Gras.” Shorty will also bring his once-in-a-lifetime Voodoo Threaxdown tour featuring Big Freedia, Tank & the Bangas, George Porter and Dumpstaphunk across the U.S. this summer.
Lifted pulses with performances from an artist and band operating at the peak of their powers. The effervescent “What It Takes” gets profoundly funky as it celebrates the strength and growth that can emerge from times of struggle, while the bittersweet “Forgiveness” leans into the band’s R&B influences as it works to move on from pain and betrayal. The blistering “I’m Standing Here” (which features a mind bending guitar solo from Gary Clark Jr.) rushes headlong into the maelstrom.
Trombone Shorty (born Troy Andrews) is a native of New Orleans’ Tremé neighborhood and got his start earlier than most, performing at Jazz Fest with Bo Diddley at age four and leading his own brass band at six. Since 2010, he’s released four chart-topping studio albums; collaborated across genres with Pharrell, Bruno Mars, Mark Ronson, Foo Fighters, ZHU, Zac Brown, Normani, Ringo Star and countless others; played Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Newport Folk, Newport Jazz, and nearly every other major festival; appeared on dozens of tv shows, and at the star-studded Sesame Street Gala, where he was honored with his own muppet. The New York Times has called him an “unstoppable force,” who recently made a cameo on The Simpsons, was profiled by Vanity Fair in 2021 and has been featured in campaigns for Crown Royal and Folgers.
Pre-order Lifted here: https://TSOA.lnk.to/Lifted
Lifted track list:
1. Come Back
2. Lie to Me
3. I’m Standing Here (Feat. Gary Clark, Jr.)
4. What It Takes (Feat. Lauren Daigle)
5. Everybody in the World (Feat. New Breed Brass Band)
6. Lifted
7. Forgiveness
8. Miss Beautiful
9. Might Not Make It Home
10. Good Company
2022 Tour dates:
February 19, 2022 – Shorty Gras in New Orleans, LA
February 24, 2022 – Culture Room in Fort Lauderdale, FL
February 25, 2022 – Culture Room in Fort Lauderdale, FL
February 26, 2022 – Fort Mose Jazz and Blues Series in St. Augustine, FL
February 27, 2022 – Gasparilla Music Festival in Tampa, FL
April 23, 2022 – Double Decker Arts Festival in Oxford, MS
April 30, 2022 – Saenger Theatre in New Orleans, LA
May 8, 2022 – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in New Orleans, LA
May 20, 2022 – Academy 2 in Birmingham, UK
May 21, 2022 – SWG3 Studio Warehouse in Glasgow, UK
May 23, 2022 – Roundhouse in London, UK
May 24, 2022 – O2 Ritz Manchester in Manchester, UK
May 26, 2022 – Mojo Club in Hamburg, Germany
May 27, 2022 – 013 Poppodium in Tilburg, The Netherlands
May 28, 2022 – Salle Pleyel in Paris, France
May 30, 2022 – Huxley’s in Berlin, Germany
May 31, 2022 – Muffathalle in Munich, Germany
June 1, 2022 – Ancienne Belgique in Brussels, Belgium
June 3, 2022 – Barcelona Guitar Festival in Barcelona, Spain
June 4, 2022 – Kapital in Madrid, Spain
June 10, 2022 – Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom in Hampton, NH
June 11, 2022 – Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston, MA
June 13, 2022 – SummerStage in Central Park in New York, NY
June 14, 2022 – Tuesdays in the Park Concert Series in Lewiston, NY
June 15, 2022 – Massey Hall in Toronto, ON
June 17, 2022 – Bold Point Park in East Providence, RI
June 18, 2022 – Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA
June 19, 2022 – Ting Pavilion in Charlottesville, VA
June 21, 2022 – Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary, NC
June 22, 2022 – Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park in Atlanta, GA
June 24, 2022 – Venue TBA in Grand Rapids, MI
June 25, 2022 – The Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre in Detroit, MI
June 26, 2022 – Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL
June 28, 2022 – Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO
June 29, 2022 – Venue TBA in Salt Lake City, UT
July 1, 2022 – KettleHouse Amphitheatre in Bonner, MT
July 2, 2022 – Venue TBA in Seattle, WA
July 3, 2022 – Edgefield in Troutdale, OR
August 10, 2022 – Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, CA
August 11, 2022 – Mountain Winery in Saratoga, CA
August 12, 2022 – Oxbow River Stage Concert Series in Napa, CA
August 13, 2022 – Santa Barbara Bowl in Santa Barbara, CA
August 14, 2022 – The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego, CA
