Now Playing loading...

Raphael Saadiq reflects on the pain of sharing his new album ‘Jimmy Lee’ with his nephew

by

Columbia RecordsRaphael Saadiq’s new album, Jimmy Lee, is named after his brother, who died years ago of a drug overdose after contracting HIV.  The singer reveals it was very difficult for him to play the music for his brother’s son.

“I wanted him to hear it before he heard it anywhere else. That was hard,” the Grammy-winner and Oscar nominee tells ABC Audio. “We both sort of like, was trying to hold in tears. We both kinda turned the other way. I turned the other way.” 

The 53-year old singer says eventually, his nephew was inspired by the album.

“Like now, he’s like super excited about it,” says Saadiq.

The former Tony! Toni! Tone! member just announced a tour to support the album. He remembers how, growing up in the Bay Area, he learned how to perform by watching a variety of artists.

“My first actual concert was The O’Jays. When I was a kid, My sister took me to see The O’Jays and that was a really good show,” Saadiq recalls.

“Locally I saw a lot of shows and it was a lot of local bands that were really, really good,” he adds, “So, you know, when you grew up in a place like Oakland, the critics are hard. They hard on you so, you know, you always want to give a good performance.”

Raphael’s tour will kick off January 23, 2020 in San Diego. He’ll perform in 26 cities through February 29 in Los Angeles. Tour stops include Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans, Boston, Chicago, and New York City.

Here are Raphael Saadiq tour dates:

1/23 — San Diego, CA, House of Blues
1/24 — Las Vegas, NV,  Brooklyn Bowl
1/25 — Phoenix, AZ, The Van Buren
1/27 — Dallas, TX, House of Blues
1/28 — New Orleans, LA. Tipitina’s
1/30 — Fort Lauderdale, FL, Parker Playhouse
1/31 — Orlando, FL, The Plaza Live
2/1 — Atlanta, GA, The Tabernacle
2/3 — Asheville, NC, The Orange Peel
2/4 — Nashville, TN, Marathon Music Works
2/5 — Charlotte, NC, The Fillmore Charlotte
2/7 — Norfolk, VA, The NorVa
2/8 — Washington, DC, 9:30 Club
2/12 — Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore
2/13 — New York, NY, Terminal 5
2/14 — Newark, NJ, Prudential Hall
2/15 — Boston, MA, Big Night Live
2/17 — Louisville, KY, Old Forester’s Paristown Hall
2/18 — Royal Oak MI, Royal Oak Music Theatre
2/19 — St. Louis, MO, The Pageant
2/21 — Chicago, IL, Vic Theatre
2/22 — Minneapolis, MN, First Avenue
2/25 — Seattle, WA, Neptune
2/27 — Portland, OR, Crystal Ballroom
2/28 — Oakland, CA, Fox Theater
2/29 — Los Angeles, CA, The Wiltern

Copyright © 2019, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.


Comments are closed.