Gregory Porter (born November 4, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He has twice won the
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
for
Best Jazz Vocal Album: first in 2014 for ''
Liquid Spirit
''Liquid Spirit'' is the third studio album by American jazz musician Gregory Porter. It was released through Blue Note Records on September 2, 2013. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2014. The record also produced si ...
'' and then again in 2017 for ''
Take Me to the Alley
''Take Me to the Alley'' is the fourth studio album by Gregory Porter, released on May 6, 2016 through Blue Note Records. It earned Porter a 2017 Grammy Award for Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album, Best Jazz Vocal Album.
The album was re ...
''.
Early life and education
![Gregory Porter Cosmopolite (220116)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Gregory_Porter_Cosmopolite_%28220116%29.jpg)
Gregory Porter was born in
Sacramento
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, and was raised in
Bakersfield, California, where his mother Ruth was a minister.
Porter has seven siblings. His mother was a large influence on his life, having encouraged him to sing in church at an early age. His father, Rufus, was largely absent from his life. Says Porter, "Everybody had some issues with their father, even if he was in the house. He may have been emotionally absent. My father was just straight-up absent. I hung out with him just a few days in my life. And it wasn't a long time. He just didn’t seem to be completely interested in being there. Maybe he was, I don't know."
After graduating from
Highland High School in 1989, he received a full
athletic scholarship
An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United ...
as a football lineman from
San Diego State University
San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...
(
SDSU Aztecs
The San Diego State Aztecs are the athletic teams that represent San Diego State University (SDSU). San Diego State currently sponsors six men's and eleven women's sports at the varsity level.
The Aztecs compete in NCAA Division I ( FBS for foo ...
), but a shoulder injury during his
junior year
A junior is person in the third year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In United States high schools, a junio ...
cut short his football career.
Porter's mother died from
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
when he was 21 years old. From her death bed, she entreated him: "Sing, baby, sing!"
Career
Porter moved to the
Bedford-Stuyvesant section of
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
in 2004, along with his brother Lloyd. He worked as a chef at Lloyd's restaurant Bread-Stuy (now defunct), where he also performed. Porter performed at other neighborhood venues including Sista's Place and Solomon's Porch, and moved on to
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...
club
St. Nick's Pub, where he maintained a weekly residency. Out of this residency evolved what would become Porter's touring band.
Porter released two albums on the
Motéma label together with Membran Entertainment Group, 2010's ''Water'' and 2012's ''Be Good'', before signing with
Blue Note Records (under
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
) on May 17, 2013. His third album, ''
Liquid Spirit
''Liquid Spirit'' is the third studio album by American jazz musician Gregory Porter. It was released through Blue Note Records on September 2, 2013. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2014. The record also produced si ...
'', was released on September 2, 2013, in Europe and on September 17, 2013, in the US. The album, produced by Brian Bacchus, won the 2014 Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album. ''Liquid Spirit'' enjoyed commercial success rarely achieved by albums in the jazz genre, reaching the top 10 on the UK album charts. It was certified gold by the
BPI, selling over 100,000 units in the UK.
In August 2014, Porter released "
The 'In' Crowd" as a single. On May 9, 2015, Porter participated in
VE Day 70: A Party to Remember, a televised commemorative concert from
Horse Guards Parade
Horse Guards Parade is a large parade ground off Whitehall in central London (at grid reference ). It is the site of the annual ceremonies of Trooping the Colour, which commemorates the monarch's official birthday, and the Beating Retreat.
H ...
in London, singing "
As Time Goes By".
His fourth album, ''Take Me to the Alley'', was released on May 6, 2016. In UK's ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' it was
Alexis Petridis's album of the week.
On June 26, 2016, Porter performed on the Pyramid Stage at the
Glastonbury Festival 2016. Writing for ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was f ...
'',
Neil McCormick
Neil McCormick (born 31 March 1961) is a British music journalist, author and broadcaster. He has been Chief Music Critic for ''The Daily Telegraph'' since 1996, and presented a music interview show for Vintage TV in the UK, Neil McCormick's Nee ...
said, "The portly middle-aged jazzer may be the oddest pop star on the planet but he is a refreshing testament to the notion that the most important organ for musical appreciation should always be our ears. And Porter has one of the most easy-on-the-ear voices in popular music, a creamy baritone that flows thick and smooth across a rich gateaux of juicy melody. It's a voice that makes you want to lick your lips and dive right in."
In September 2016, Porter performed at
Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park
Radio 2 Live (formally known as Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park and Radio 2's Festival in a Day) is a British music festival that took place from 2011 to 2019 in Hyde Park in London, and is due to be held in Leeds in September 2022. The idea behind th ...
from
Hyde Park, London
Hyde Park is a Listed building#Heritage protection, Grade I-listed major park in Westminster, Greater London, the largest of the four Royal Parks of London, Royal Parks that form a chain from the entrance to Kensington Palace through Kensingt ...
. He would go on to perform in the annual ''
BBC Children in Need'' show in November, a night dedicated to Sir
Terry Wogan
Sir Michael Terence Wogan (; 3 August 1938 – 31 January 2016) was an Irish radio and television broadcaster who worked for the BBC in the UK for most of his career. Between 1993 and his semi-retirement in December 2009, his BBC Radio 2 week ...
, who hosted it in previous years and was a fan of Porter.
In January 2017, Porter performed the song "
Holding On" on
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
's ''
The Graham Norton Show
''The Graham Norton Show'' is a British comedy chat show presented by Graham Norton. It was initially broadcast on BBC Two, from 22 February 2007, before moving to BBC One in October 2009. It currently airs on Friday evenings, with Norton s ...
''. In September 2017 he performed as part of the ''
Later... with Jools Holland: Later 25'' concert at the
Royal Albert Hall. In October 2017 he performed the song "
Mona Lisa
The ''Mona Lisa'' ( ; it, Gioconda or ; french: Joconde ) is a Half length portrait, half-length portrait painting by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. Considered an archetypal masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance, it has been described ...
", with
Jeff Goldblum
Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum (; born October 22, 1952) is an American actor and musician. He has starred in some of the highest-grossing films of his era, such as ''Jurassic Park'' (1993) and ''Independence Day'' (1996), as well as their sequels.
...
on piano, on ''The Graham Norton Show''.
On August 28, 2020, Porter released his sixth studio album, ''All Rise''. On November 5, 2021, Porter released a Greatest Hits compilation album titled ''Still Rising - The Collection'' on the
Blue Note
In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical c ...
label. The same day he performed the song "Revival" on ''The Graham Norton Show''.
On New Year's Eve 2021, Porter performed on ''
Jools' Annual Hootenanny
''Jools' Annual Hootenanny'' is a TV show presented by Jools Holland and broadcast on New Year's Eve as an end-of-year special edition of his series '' Later... with Jools Holland''. It is generally broadcast between approximately 11pm on 31 ...
''.
On June 2, 2022, Porter, accompanied by the
London Community Gospel Choir
The London Community Gospel Choir is Britain's first renowned contemporary "performance touring, inspirational gospel choir band", fusing gospel with multi-genres of music, including pop, soul, jazz, R&B, and classical. It was founded in 198 ...
, sang the specially-composed song "A Life Lived with Grace" for the lighting of
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Beacons
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Beacons were lit on 2 June 2022 throughout the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and British Overseas Territories and each of the capital cities of Commonwealth countries, in celebration of the Platinum ...
.
Style
Describing his own style Porter said in a 2014 interview: "I would say
Donny Hathaway,
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...
,
Bill Withers
William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including " Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), " Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (197 ...
– I hear something of me in all of them that is similar to the culture that I grew up in i.e. Gospel music. I could hear the familiarity to Gospel music in the songs of someone like
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...
; just voices that influence my soul and are rooted in Gospel music."
Critical reception
Since his 2010 debut on the Motéma label, Porter has been well received in the music press.
His debut album, ''Water'', was nominated for Best Jazz Vocal album at the 53rd Annual
Grammy Awards. He was also a member of the original Broadway cast of ''
It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues
''It Ain't Nothin' But the Blues'' is a musical written by Charles Bevel, Lita Gaithers, Randal Myler, Ron Taylor, and Dan Wheetman. It was originally produced at The Denver Center for the Performing Arts and later presented by the Crossroads Th ...
''. His second album, ''Be Good'', which contains many of Porter's compositions, garnered critical acclaim for both his distinctive singing and his compositions, such as "Be Good (Lion's Song)", "Real Good Hands", and "On My Way to Harlem". "Real Good Hands" was also nominated for Best Traditional R&B Performance at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards. In his review of ''Water'', the BBC's
Kevin Le Gendre
Kevin Le Gendre is a British journalist, broadcaster and author whose work focuses on Black music. He is deputy editor of ''Echoes'' magazine, has written for a wide range of publications, including ''Jazzwise'', ''MusicWeek'', '' Vibrations'', ' ...
wrote that "Gregory Porter has a voice and musicality to be reckoned with."
''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' described Porter as "a jazz singer of thrilling presence, a booming baritone with a gift for earthy refinement and soaring uplift" in its review of ''Liquid Spirit''.
Michael G. Nastos of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
wrote a mixed review of ''Water'', stating: "In hard bop trim, Shorter's 'Black Nile' has Porter shouting out a lyric line that was done many years ago by Chicago's Luba Raashiek, but Porter's voice is strained and breaks up. While on every track Porter sings with great conviction, he's more effective on lower-key compositions", but went on to say that "he's right up there with
José James
José James (born January 20, 1978) is an American vocalist who combines jazz and hip hop.
Biography
José James attended The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. In 2008, he debuted with his first album, ''The Dreamer'', on the Brownsw ...
as the next big male vocal jazz star."
Personal life
Porter is married to Victoria and they have two sons, Demyan and Lev. Their home is in
Bakersfield, California. His brother Lloyd Cornelius Porter (* 1970) died in May 2020 due to complications from a
Covid-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...
infection.
For public appearances, Porter always wears a hat reminiscent of a
deerstalker
A deerstalker is a type of cap that is typically worn in rural areas, often for hunting, especially deer stalking. Because of the cap's popular association with the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, it has become stereotypical headgear f ...
incorporating fabric that covers his ears and chin. In a 2012 interview with Jazzweekly.com, when asked: "What's with the weird and wonderful hat?" Porter replied: "I've had some surgery on my skin, so this has been my look for a little while and will continue to be for a while longer. People recognize me by it now. It is what it is." In an interview with ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was f ...
'' in 2016, he divulged that he received some facial scars when he was "seven or eight", but declined to go into the specifics of how they were sustained. He said: "I just saw it one day (the hat) and said 'I'm gonna put this on, I like it.' It was before the music career." The cap is a
Kangol
Kangol is a British clothing company famous for its headwear. The name Kangol reflects the original materials for production, the K coming from the word 'silK' (a recent attribution to 'Knitting' is incorrect), the ANG from 'ANGora', and the ...
Summer Spitfire.
Discography
Studio albums
* ''
Water
Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...
'' (2010)
* ''
Be Good'' (2012)
* ''
Liquid Spirit
''Liquid Spirit'' is the third studio album by American jazz musician Gregory Porter. It was released through Blue Note Records on September 2, 2013. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2014. The record also produced si ...
'' (2013)
* ''
Take Me to the Alley
''Take Me to the Alley'' is the fourth studio album by Gregory Porter, released on May 6, 2016 through Blue Note Records. It earned Porter a 2017 Grammy Award for Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album, Best Jazz Vocal Album.
The album was re ...
'' (2016)
* ''
Nat King Cole & Me
''Nat King Cole & Me'' is the fifth studio album by American jazz musician and singer Gregory Porter. He sings songs that were either recorded by or inspired by Nat King Cole, whom Porter has cited as an important part of his childhood and an inf ...
'' (2017)
* ''All Rise'' (2020)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
Bibliography
*
References
External links
*
*
*
* Interviews: Gregory Porter discusses his life and music on 7th Avenue Project radio show
September 23, 2012 (Pt 1)an
June 23, 2013 (Pt 2).Gregory Porterat
Motéma Music
Motéma Music is a jazz and world music record label in the United States. It was founded in 2003 in San Francisco Bay Area. This record label’s catalog spans genres, cultures, and generations and has received Grammy recognition for over twen ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Gregory
Living people
1971 births
Musicians from Sacramento, California
20th-century African-American male singers
American baritones
American jazz singers
Blue Note Records artists
Grammy Award winners
African-American jazz musicians
Jazz musicians from California
21st-century American singers
21st-century American male singers
American male jazz musicians
Motéma Music artists
African-American songwriters
21st-century African-American male singers
American male singer-songwriters
Singer-songwriters from California