"SOULFUL" (NPR) LIZ BRASHER FEATURED ON NPR MUSIC, NPR WEEKEND EDITION SXSW PREVIEWS

Fat Possum artist Liz Brasher was featured on NPR Weekend Edition to preview her SXSW set on Saturday. Host Don Gonyea said she possesses a "great soulful voice." NPR Music's Stephen Thompson said, "You hear traces of Stax Records soul music but you also hear girl groups but then modern ballad singers. There's a lot going on in her sound. I think she's got enormous potential." Her new EP 'Outcast' comes out April 27.

Catch her live at SXSW:

Wed Mar 14 // WMOT SXSW Party @ El Mercado - 4:30pm (broadcast live)
Wed Mar 14 // NPR Music SXSW Showcase @ Stubb's - 11pm
Thur Mar 15 // Flatstock Stage @ Austin Convention Center - 1:30pm
Thur Mar 15 // Tacodeli Day Party @ Yeti Flagship - 5:30pm

Additional tour dates: http://www.lizbrasher.com/shows

2018 Liz Brasher photo

Click for high res version
Credit: Courtesy of the artist

GARAGE/SOUL OF FAT POSSUM’S LIZ BRASHER HEADED TO NPR STAGE AT SXSW, GROOVE-HEAVY NEW EP ‘OUTCAST’ ON FAT POSSUM DUE APRIL 27

BRASHER, A MUSICAL AND ETHNIC OUTCAST, EXPLORES LIFE ON THE OUTSIDE

44-DATE TOUR CONFIRMED

“Artist to watch in 2018.” - NPR Music

"Timelessly American… Brasher's strain of soul [is] one that's flush with lyrical nods to Biblical images, Rubber Soul harmonies and a gruff reverence to its southern roots." - Billboard

Fat Possum’s “big-sounding” (Brooklyn Vegan) artist Liz Brasher will perform on the NPR Music stage at SXSW and will launch a 44-date tour as Fat Possum Records has confirmed the release of her EP ‘Outcast’ on April 27. a first-generation Dominican-Italian, this self-described outcast doesn’t fit neatly into any categories musically or personally. Brasher says, “I’ve never fit into a set group, genre or ethnicity and my heart goes out to other outcasts.”  She confesses that being an outcast is also an attitude she carries, saying, “I don’t like rules.”

“Body of Mine” postable link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zV8LsZHXEso

 

 

Produced by Brasher, Scott Bomar of the Bo-Keys, and Bruce Watson in her new hometown of Memphis, the ‘Outcast’ EP draws as much from garage rock, classic soul and funk, and ‘60s girl group pop sounds as from the music she grew up singing in church. Often starting her songwriting with a beat, Brasher wrote several of the songs under the influence of her recent move to Memphis, including the hard-grooving “Come My Way,” the dark “Feel Something,” and the title track. “Feel Something” is simultaneously an observation on culture, where it takes more and more to shock onlookers, and a portrayal of a character who is constantly seeking attention. The EP also features Al Gamble (St. Paul & The Broken Bones, The Hold Steady, Robert Finley) on keys.

NPR Music said, “Good-God-Hallelujah… Brasher (rhymes with Frazer) shouts, rocks, rolls, and tears it up on stage; her music will dig down deep to touch your soul.” She’s also earned love from Spotify’s Fresh Folk playlist.

‘OUTCAST’ EP TRACK LISTING

1. Body Of Mine

2. Come My way

3. Feel something

4. Outcast

5. Remain

6. Cold Baby

Preorder link: http://store.fatpossum.com/products/outcast-ep

LIZ BRASHER PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

March 2 - Austin, TX - ACL Live at the Moody Theater (w/ the Mavericks)

March 3 - Austin, TX - ACL Live at the Moody Theater (w/ the Mavericks)

March 3 - Austin, TX - The Blackheart (midnight)

March 14 - Austin, TX - WMOT interview at El Mercado (4:30pm, SXSW)

March 14 - Austin, TX - NPR Stage at Stubb’s (SXSW)

March 15 - Austin, TX - Yeti (5:30pm, SXSW)

April 27 - Oxford, MS - Double Decker Arts Festival

April 29 - Columbus, MS - Sunstroke House

May 2 - Nashville, TN - The Basement

May 3 - Birmingham, AL - The Nick

May 4 - Atlanta, GA - Shaky Knees Festival

May 6 - West Palm Beach, FL - Sun Fest

May 8 - New Orleans, LA - House Of Blues *

May 10 - Austin, TX - Mohawk *

May 11 - Dallas, TX - House Of Blues Cambridge *

May 13 - Phoenix, AZ - Last Exit Live *

May 14 - San Diego, CA - House of Blues Voodoo Room *

May 15 - West Hollywood, CA - Peppermint Club *

May 16 - San Francisco, CA - Café Du Nord *

May 18 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Lounge *

May 20 - Seattle, WA - Barboza *

May 22 - Bozeman, MT - Filling Station *

May 23 - Salt Lake City, UT - Rye *

May 24 - Denver, CO - Marquis Theatre *

May 25 - Omaha, NE - Slowdown *

May 26 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry *

May 30 - Nashville, TN - City Winery - Nashville *

May 31 - St Louis, MO - Blueberry Hill - Duck Room *

June 1 - Des Moines, IA - Wooly's *

June 2 - Kearney, NE - Heritage Days *

June 6 - Ann Arbor, MI - The Ark *

June 7 - Pittsburgh, PA - Spirit Hall *

June 8 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall *

June 9 - Cleveland, OH - Laure Live *

June 12 - Annapolis, MD - Rams Head On Stage *

June 14 - Charleston, SC - Charleston Pour House *

June 15 - Hilton Head Island, SC - Rooftop Bar at Poseidon *

June 17 - Atlanta, GA - City Winery *

June 19 - Washington, DC - City Winery *

June 20 - Pawling, NY - Daryl's House *

June 21 - Sellersville, PA - Sellersville Theater *

June 22 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom *

June 24 - Holyoke, MA - Iron Horse *

June 25 - Boston, MA - City Winery *

June 28 - Chicago, IL - City Winery *

June 29 - Toledo, OH - Civic Music Hall *

June 30 - Indianapolis, IN -The Vogue *

* with Red Wanting Blue

NPR MUSIC SCREAMS “GOOD-GOD-HALLELUJAH,” PREMIERES NEW FAT POSSUM ACT LIZ BRASHER NEW SINGLE “BODY OF MINE,” FEATURES TRACK ON ALL SONGS CONSIDERED

BIG-VOICED SINGER ADDED TO SHAKY KNEES FESTIVAL

 

NPR Music has premiered new Fat Possum artist Liz Brasher’s new single “Body of Mine” on NPR Music, featuring the track on this week’s All Songs Considered episode.

 

 

 

Jessie Scott writes, “Good-God-Hallelujah… Brasher (rhymes with Frazer) shouts, rocks, rolls, and tears it up on stage; her music will dig down deep to touch your soul.” Fat Possum Records will release “Body of Mine” this Friday. A Memphian of Dominican descent who grew up singing in Spanish in the church, Brasher synthesizes the sounds of of ‘60s garage, girl group sounds, dirty blues, holy roller church music, and Bob Dylan into something completely her own.

 

Atlanta’s Shaky Knees Festival added her to its May lineup that includes Jack White, Queens of the Stone Age, David Byrne, Fleet Foxes, The War on Drums, Courtney Barnett, Nathaniel Rateliff, Lord Huron, Manchester Orchestra, Alvvays, and many more.

 

The big-voiced Brasher has already earned previous praise from Billboard, Garden & Gun Magazine, Brooklyn Vegan, Amazon Music, WMOT Radio Nashville, and made her NYC debut at Joe’s Pub. Her song “Painted Image” was added to Spotify’s Fresh Folk playlist. She’s also taped an episode for PBS’ Sun Studio Sessions to air this year.

 

Stay tuned for more tour dates.

Don Bryant photos

 Credit: Matthew C. White

  Credit: Matthew C. White

 Credit: Matthew C. White

Liz Brasher Billboard performance

GOLDEN-VOICED LIZ BRASHER SIGNS WITH FAT POSSUM & APA AGENCY

Liz Brasher – whose voice will stop you in your tracks – has signed to Fat Possum Records and the APA Agency. She grew up singing in the Baptist Church, but singing in Spanish with her family, who are of Dominican descent. New single “Cold Baby” is out now digitally and will be released November 3 via a 7”. She will perform at NYC’s Joe’s Pub on November 16.

Billboard continued, "Brasher's strain of soul [is] flush with lyrical nods to Biblical images, Rubber Soul harmonies and a gruff reverence to its southern roots." Of the single, Billboard said, "An elegant, emotive torch song, Brasher's hollering twang beaming through a cloud-like arrangement of strings and tear-stained guitar strums." She will tape a November session with Billboard as well.

APA is booking home to Brian Wilson, Blondie, Cake, Elvis Depressedly, Frontier Ruckus, Ingrid Michaelson, River Whyless, Pinegrove, and Tristen.

Though originally from Charlotte, NC, she has recently moved to Memphis, TN.

Liz Brasher "Cold Baby" video

Liz Brasher clips

Billboard video premiere (October 4, 2017)

NPR Weekend Edition SXSW preview (March 10, 2018)

Brooklyn Vegan premiere (October 31, 2017)

NPR All Songs Considered (Jan 9, 2018)

Rolling Stone Country SXSW roundup (March 19, 2018)

Liz Brasher photos

SOUL SURVIVOR & FAT POSSUM SOUL MAN DON BRYANT’S MUSIC FEATURED IN NEW FILM DETROIT AS AMERICANA FEST PANEL ADDED

HI RHYTHM SECTION – FEATURED ON NEW ALBUM ‘DON’T GIVE UP ON LOVE’ – TO BE HONORED AT AMERICANA MUSIC AWARDS FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT

The new film Detroit features the classic song “Weak and Broken Hearted” from soul legend the songwriter of “I Can’t Stand The Rain,” Don Bryant. It’s part of a big year for the Soul Survivor, who’s earned it with a “joyous miracle” (Paste Magazine) of a new album ‘Don’t Give Up On Love’ (Fat Possum).

Don will be a performer and panelist during the Americana Music Festival at the Country Music Hall of Fame on September 13, in addition to his official showcase September 16 at 12th & Porter:

Panel and Performance: Southern Streams
11:30 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
Ford Theater at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Available to live stream at countrymusichalloffame.org/streaming
Americana music, like all American music, is fundamentally eclectic, born of the myriad cultural crossings that form the basis of our complex national history. Within every country song is a blues root and a soul heart; every folk ballad has traveled within a diaspora that may have touched the Caribbean, Mexico, or the Native American West. This songwriters round brings together four artists whose music reflects very different family legacies and life experiences, from Southern soul to Latin-tinged country to African-diaspora folk. Their songs and stories form a portrait of Americana music that reflects the true and varied foundation of Americana music. Moderated by Ann Powers of NPR Music, the program will feature performances and conversation from Don Bryant, Yola Carter, Raul Malo, and Joan Osborne.

Also spotlighted during Americana Fest will be the Hi Rhythm Section, members of whom played on ‘Don’t Give Up On Love,’ including Charles Hodges on organ, Archie Turner on keyboards, and Howard Grimes on drums.

Bryant has earned raves this year from NPR Music, Rolling Stone, Paste, UNCUT, MOJO, and All Music.

Don Bryant tour dates

September 5 – Great Hall of La Villette – Paris, France
September 6 – Nefertiti - Göteborg, Sweden
September 7 – Kulturbolaget – Malmo, Sweden
September 8 – Cosmopolite – Oslo, Norway
September 16 – 12th & Porter – Nashville, TN (Americana Fest, 9pm)
October 6 – Hardly Strictly Bluegrass – San Francisco, CA
October 7 – Orpheum Theater – New Orleans, LA (Ponderosa Stomp)
January 25 – Carolina Theatre – Durham, NC (Take Me to the River tour)
January 26 – Jefferson Center – Roanoke, VA (Take Me to the River tour)
January 27 – Harbison Theatre – Irmo, SC (Take Me to the River tour)
January 29 – University of Florida Phillips Center – Gainesville, FL  (Take Me to the River tour)
January 30 – Florida Theatre – Jacksonville, FL (Take Me to the River tour)
February 3 – Parker Playhouse – Fort Lauderdale, FL (Take Me to the River tour)

FRESH FROM STANDING OVATION AT LINCOLN CENTER OUT OF DOORS, “MARVELOUS” (ROLLING STONE) SOUL SURVIVOR & FAT POSSUM ARTIST DON BRYANT ADDS AMERICANA FEST, EUROPEAN TOUR, PONDEROSA STOMP APPEARANCE, TAKE ME TO THE RIVER TOUR

Fresh from a packed house, standing ovation performance at Lincoln Center Out of Doors with Lincoln Center’s Jill Sternheimer calling him “incredible,” Fat Possum soul man Don Bryant will perform at a series of concerts, including as part of Americana Fest, the Ponderosa Stomp, the Take Me to the River tour, and a headlining European tour.

September 16 – 12th & Porter – Nashville, TN (Americana Fest, 9pm)
October 7 – Orpheum Theater – New Orleans, LA (Ponderosa Stomp)
January 25 – Carolina Theatre – Durham, NC (Take Me to the River tour)
January 26 – Jefferson Center – Roanoke, VA (Take Me to the River tour)
January 27 – Harbison Theatre – Irmo, SC (Take Me to the River tour)
January 29 – University of Florida Phillips Center – Gainesville, FL  (Take Me to the River tour)
January 30 – Florida Theatre – Jacksonville, FL (Take Me to the River tour)
February 3 – Parker Playhouse – Fort Lauderdale, FL (Take Me to the River tour)

Watch his video for "How Do I Get There?" shot in the Clayborn Temple, a landmark of the civil rights movement via NPR: http://n.pr/2loxNon

Backed by The Bo-Keys and produced by Scott Bomar and Bruce Watson, the new album ‘Don’t Give Up On Love’ (Fat Possum) has seen the “I Can’t Stand the Rain” songwriter earning reams of love:

“A formidable soul singer…inspired in every sense of the term.”
— NPR Music

“His voice remains marvelous…canonical, finely tuned Southern soul.”
— Rolling Stone

“’Don’t Give Up On Love’ is a joyous miracle. Whatever Don Bryant’s been taking, we could all use a dose.”
— Paste (8.7 / 10)

“A lively and supremely compelling singer.”
— Uncut (Four Stars ****)

“Bryant's vocal is rich and full on songs that are framed in exclamatory horns and soothing organ”
— MOJO (Four Stars ****)

“One pleasant and pleasing surprise.”
— AllMusic

Don Bryant bio

 Don Bryant

Age. Some things do get better with age. Like the slow grind. Kids are always in a hurry—not enough time in the day, not enough minutes in the hour, too many things to do and places to be. Age makes us appreciate the depth in experiences, the range of senses in a single moment, a single touch. Instead of trying to fill 60 different seconds, age opens up the fullness of a single minute. Less becomes so much more.
Oh, the slow grind. Don Bryant gets inside it, slows it further, fills every little crevice with sensuous feeling, with yearning, with pain and love. You know that old song that O. V. Wright did so well in 1971 that no one can ever do the song again (as much as everyone tries)—“Nickel and a Nail”? O. V. Wright has held tight to that song and rightfully so. But not no mo. Don has slowed it, made it a richer and deeper experience. Not to take anything from O.V.—he made it possible for others to try, for Don to succeed. But O. V., after nearly half a century, now you gotta step aside. Don Bryant is here.
Though it ain’t like he just showed up. The roots of this record are in the Memphis church. That’s where Don Bryant began singing when he was 5. He joined his father’s family vocal group, then formed a gospel quartet for a high school radio gig. Broadcasting broadened the audience and they went secular, singing pop at WLOK on Dick “Cane” Cole’s popular show. Kids walking to school every morning listened to Don and the Four Canes. After parting with the DJ, they took a very real step toward careers when, as the Four Kings, they began fronting Willie Mitchell’s band.
Willie Mitchell led the swingingest, groovin’est band in the Memphis-Mississippi-Arkansas area—the American music floodplain. (He would later discover Al Green and make him—and keep him—a star.) Willie’s band was known for instrumental records, but when they’d play at Danny’s in West Memphis. Don’s group fronted them, the voices that pulled dancers onto the floor. But the group broke up, as groups will do, and Willie, who was touring concert venues and dance halls, needed a vocalist who could play with his supple, slinky funky beats. The Four Kings were deposed, but Willie anointed Don Bryant. Don could stand in front of Willie’s orchestra and lead.
Don could also write songs. He was still in his teens when, in 1960, Willie was producing the so-great 5 Royales and Don handed him “I Got To Know.” The 5 Royales put it on wax. Don was hot in the spotlight and in the writer’s room.
As Willie Mitchell carved out his place at Hi Records—first as an artist, then as a songwriter, then a producer and co-owner—Don was close by. Don cut songs at Hi under the Four Kings moniker (dig “That Driving Beat”) and as a solo artist (“Don’t Turn Your Back On Me”). He wrote material for other Hi artists, including Janet & the Jays and Norman West. In 1969, still in the age of 7” singles, Don was popular enough to release an album. But the big hit that would put his name in every household proved elusive.
Around 1970, Willie put Don with the Hi label’s newest act, a petite chanteuse from St. Louis with commanding pipes. Ann Peebles burst on the scene with “Part Time Love.” Don looked at this slight young lady and penned “99 Lbs” for her: “You wouldn't know what I'm talking 'bout/ If you never had a love like this/… 99 lbs of natural born goodness/99 lbs of soul.” The relationship warmed, they co-wrote the hit “I Can’t Stand the Rain” in 1973 and were married the following year. Ann’s performing career continued, as did Don’s writing, and they began raising a family. Between then and now, Don returned to the microphone periodically, sometimes dueting with his wife, sometimes releasing gospel material. Always, he continued to write songs.
And all the while, that voice was maturing, mellowing, until these recordings that find him, at age 74, in peak form and taking O. V.’s song. The band is a mix of lifelong cohorts and upstart stalwarts. They understand where he’s been and where he wants to go, and they take him there, making his song “How Do I Get There,” a rhetorical question, because they have clearly found the way. Again it’s so much about the pacing—restrained and slow to allow the nuance in his voice to ooze and soothe. The organ and keyboard interplay of Charles Hodges and Hubby Mitchell, both from the Hi Rhythm Section, set us firmly in church firmament. Don’s song moves steady and deliberately, like a gang of chained slaves seeking hope, like a doleful band of earthbound angels. The yearning is the thing—spiritual, sensual, and from the heart.
Willie Mitchell died in 2010, but Don makes his presence palpable on “Don’t Give Up On Love,” a song Don co-wrote with bassist Scott Bomar. The strings leap out like a classic Hi record and the mood never breaks. The same team evokes the feel of Willie’s band crowding the Danny’s Club dance floor in West Memphis with “Something About You,” the killer guitar is played by young man/old soul Joe Restivo. And their “What Kind of Love” keeps us at Danny’s Club til much later, when the beats are harder and the moves more angular. “First You Cry,” a contemporary cover, is built on the simplicity of solid soul through the decades; it’s wise, witty, and true.
A few of these songs come from Don’s past. He reprises the 5 Royales’ version of his own “I Got To Know.” Despite its age, it’s fresh as a New Orleans hurricane, and just as tasty. Don’s “It Was Jealousy” has become a soul music standard, familiar to Northern Soul fans as an Otis Clay recording and to southern soul fans by Ann Peebles’ treatment. Today he puts a pop patina atop it, the smooth horns giving it an extra shine.
His new version of “Can’t Hide the Hurt” hits the sweet spot that all contemporary soul music strives for: It’s yesterday’s now music today. Like the whole album, it’s completely new but with an old soul. Do you grab your boogie shoes or a handkerchief to wipe away the tears?
“One Ain’t Enough” is a new track written by some of “the kids” who play on this album. It draws from all the right influences to sound like a fossil that’s been cleaned, polished and robustly reanimated.
I was lucky and popped by the end of the recording sessions. They’d just cut “One Ain’t Enough” and were listening to playback. Veteran drummer Howard Grimes, also of Willie Mitchell’s tutelage and the drummer on many of Don’s Hi sessions—he couldn’t keep from keeping the beat and he stepped to the middle of the control room floor. The Soul Train line formed.
Howard’s arms came up and his feet went down. His eyes took a distant look and he was transported beyond the slow grind. His backbone slipped, he began to dip, everyone shouted and clapped. This kind of music moved audiences then and it moves them now. Even the music makers can’t stand still. Soul survivors, young and old—nothing holds them back.
--Robert Gordon, Memphis, 2017
Robert Gordon is the author of Respect Yourself: Stax Records and the Soul Explosion, among other books and films.

Bette Smith "Man Child" video

Director: Emory Parker

VOCAL POWERHOUSE BETTE SMITH TRACES BED-STUY ROOTS BACK TO DEEP SOUTH SOUL & GOSPEL HEADWATERS ON JIMBO MATHUS-PRODUCED DEBUT LP ‘JETLAGGER,’ OUT 9/29 VIA BIG LEGAL MESS

STREAM LEAD VIDEO "MAN CHILD" VIA BILLBOARD HERE: http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7874090/bette-smith-jetlagger-debut-interview

Brooklyn soul dynamo Bette Smith will release her debut album, ‘Jetlagger,’ September 29 via Fat Possum subsidiary Big Legal Mess. Recorded in Mississippi with producer Jimbo Mathus—who’s played on records by everyone from Valerie June to Elvis Costello—the album finds Smith reconnecting with the Deep South roots of the gospel, soul, and blues music she grew up singing in New York’s rough and tumble Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. The record also fulfills a deathbed promise Smith made to her late brother, Junior, that she’d keep on singing no matter what.

“He told me, ‘I want you to sing; don’t give up,’” remembers Smith, who wears yellow onstage to honor his memory. “It’s all for Junior, now.”

In a premiere and feature, Billboard's Elias Leight writes, "A rugged, chugging southern soul record... Like Betty Davis or Betty Wright before her, she's imbues tracks with shingly, sawtoothed texture, capable of breaking off a high note with a throaty cry or scraping so low and wide that she threatens to put her bass player out of work."

‘Jetlagger’s ten tracks bring together obscure deep cuts, vintage classics, and originals written specifically for Smith, who counted late icon Ray Charles among the fans of her raspy and riveting voice. From a simmering take on Isaac Hayes’ “Do Your Thing” to a feverish rendition of the Staple Singers’ “City In The Sky,” the album showcases Smith’s fiery, mesmerizing delivery, rich with emotion and bruising in its honesty. Mathus dug deep into the Mississippi and Memphis soul bags for material, unearthing hidden gems like the moving “Flying Sweet Angel of Joy” by Famous L. Renfroe, while originals like the raucous soul-rocker “Man Child,” spare and funky “Shackles & Chains,” and Blaxsploitation soundtrack-esque “Durty Hustlin’” draw on Smith’s defiant and wild personality, as well as the hard-won perspective she gained growing up poor in Bed-Stuy. The deeply soulful title cut “I Will Feed You” and the rollicking title track were chosen from over a hundred songs that Smith wrote. First-call Memphis horn players Marc Franklin (Robert Cray, Lucero and Kirk Smothers (Don Bryant, Melissa Etheridge, Cyndi Lauper, Buddy Guy) were summoned to complete the album’s sound.

“Everything was recorded live,” recalls Smith, who cites her church choir director father and gospel-loving grandmother among her earliest influences. “I do well when I’m performing like that. There’s New York aggressiveness and passion. I get to a fever pitch. I’m gone. I’m not even there anymore. Something else takes over.”

‘Jetlagger’ follows Smith’s 2016 EP, which earned her international tour dates and rave reviews. Bitch Magazine compared her to Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu, praising her “stunning voice,” while Soul Tracks hailed her music as “steaming,” and No Depression exalted her as “a woman with the blues power of both Big Mama Thornton and Bessie Smith, the smooth classiness of jazz/blues singer Joe Williams, the dynamics of Koko Taylor, and the energy of Janis Joplin all wrapped up tight in a relevant Billie Holiday look.”

Smith will perform in NYC’s Riverside Park on Sunday, Sept 10 as part of the West Side County Fair presented by the Parks Department’s Summer On The Hudson series. Stay tuned for additional tour dates and details to be announced.

Bette Smith bio

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Born and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bette Smith reconnected with her musical roots in Memphis and Mississippi – and fulfilled a promise to her late brother in the process. Recording her debut full-length album in Mississippi brought her to the roots of the gospel she sang in the church and the soul music she heard on the block on hot summer nights music growing up on the corner of Nostrand and Fulton. The powerful ‘Jetlagger’ comes out September 29 on Big Legal Mess, a Fat Possum subsidiary. “The south came to me and grabbed me and pulled me down there. The southern migration came up and got me. My neighbors in Bed-Stuy influenced me,” she says.

She recalls that Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn was a very different place when she was growing up. “It was rough back then!,” she exclaims. “There was lots of gang activity. One gang came after my brother and my dad came out with a lead pipe to protect him. It was really hairy. My older brother Junior protected me from all of that. He would intimidate all of the other guys.”

She owes even more to Junior. Several years ago, on his deathbed suffering from kidney failure, he made her promise not to give up on a career as a singer. Those last days of his, she sang while he tapped his foot on the hospital bed at Kings County Hospital. “I didn’t know how else to comfort him,” she recalls. He told her, “I want you to sing; don’t give up” and she’s kept that promise, playing gigs from One Penn Plaza in New York to the Boogie Woogie Festival in Brussels, Belgium, always wearing yellow on stage to honor him. “It’s all for Junior now,” she affirms.

Jimbo Mathus produced the album at Water Valley’s Dial Back Sound and sent roughs to Bruce Watson, who swiftly signed Smith on for a full-length. He’s become a secret weapon for Fat Possum and Big Legal Mess Records; in addition to being a solo artist and a founding member of the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Mathus has also produced Shinyribs, Luther Dickinson, The Seratones, and played on records by Valerie June, Buddy Guy, and Elvis Costello. “You exceeded all expectations,” Mathus told her.

The trip was also Smith’s first to the deep south. She recalls, “It took me out of my comfort zone. I got lost in a swamp one time and kind of freaked out! I’m a quintessential city girl.”

Smith beams when talking about the sessions. “It was really wonderful. Everything was recorded live. I felt like I was Tina Turner and Etta James. I do well when I’m performing. It was a real performance that had never been captured before.” Anyone who’s ever seen her live knows how absorbed she gets on stage and these sessions put her in that same place. She continues, “There’s New York aggressiveness and passion. I get to a fever pitch. I’m gone. I’m not even there anymore. Something else takes over.”

Mathus dug deep into the Mississippi and Memphis soul bags, unearthing “Flying Sweet Angel of Joy” by Famous L. Renfroe, a song with which Smith particularly connected. “I believe in guardian angels. Jimbo picked up on that. I feel that I was giving voice for Famous. because he never really got a chance.” Mathus also picked Isaac Hayes’ “Do Your Thing,” which simmers with Memphis heat.

The raucous soul-rock of “Man Child,” the spare funk of “Shackles & Chains,” and Blaxsploitation soundtrack feel of “Durty Hustlin’” were all written or co-written by

Mathus specifically for Smith. She gets rough, wrestling the title track to the ground; the song captures the late nights and lack of sleep inherent in a musician’s life. First-call Memphis horn players Marc Franklin (Robert Cray, Lucero and Kirk Smothers (Don Bryant, Melissa Etheridge, Cyndi Lauper, Buddy Guy) were summoned to complete the album’s sound.

‘Jetlagger’s’ closer, the Staple Singers’ “City In the Sky,” connected her back to Bed-Stuy. She remembers, “My father was a church choir director. I was singing since I was five years old. I take it to church. I just break out, start speaking in tongues.” She also heard gospel around the house every weekend. “My grandmother listened to nothing but gospel,” she recalls, citing Mahalia Jackson and Reverend James Cleveland. “Every Sunday morning, she would get up and put on these records while dressing and praising the Lord. The furniture was plastic-covered. After lunch, it was more gospel music,” she says. Bed-Stuy block parties would also have revivalist-style gospel acts. “I’m steeped in it!,” she adds. Though a Seventh Day Adventist as a child, Smith is now a member of the Church of God in Christ.

Several years ago while singing in Los Angeles, Bette’s voice drew the attention of another artist who came up in the church – Ray Charles, who invited her to collaborate with him shortly before his passing. “It was the first inkling that I had greatness in me,” she says.

Reviewers have noticed, too. On the strength of a 2016 EP, Bitch Magazine compared her to Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu, praising her “stunning voice [and] powerful but pliable tone” saying that her songs “cut deep” and calling her music “remarkable.” Bitch continues, “[Smith’s] individuality keeps her story in her own hands and gives her firm ground from which to leap into her career. And with that voice, she can aim high.”

Soul Tracks said simply, “Steaming… That voice though!”

No Depression said, “Show stopper… Finally, a woman with the blues power of both Big Mama Thornton and Bessie Smith, the smooth, classiness of jazz/blues singer Joe Williams, the dynamics of Koko Taylor and the energy of Janis Joplin all wrapped up tight in a relevant Billie Holiday look… No lame, whiney female vocals here. It’s all confidence and power. The sexy slur and slide of Bette’s voice, her roll of syllables, the phrasing and intonation all on target, all polished with gratifying verve. But the true sting is in Bette’s ability to know exactly how to interpret a song -- her songs, or anyone else’s.”

She already can’t wait for her next trip down south, when she’s going to meet soul legends Al Green and Don Bryant. She says, “It feels like the circle is coming around. The gospel roots remain the same. This is timeless music – soul, rhythm and blues – Mississippi is the birthplace. When you’re down there, you feel something.”