Five-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and guitarist Keb' Mo' literally opens up in his new album The Breakdown (released August 21 via Concord Records).
WBGO's Doug Doyle spoke with Keb' Mo' about his latest project and the time of personal upheaval that led to this intimate record.
This 10-song collection from the LA native was recorded at his home studio outside Nashville and written in the wake of life-saving open heart surgery in 2024.
It was during a trip to South Africa that Keb' Mo' started to experience a shortness of breath.
"It was crazy. I thought I was having some kind of lung issue, but heart failure never occurred to me."
In the tune "Stitched Up Heart", Keb' Mo' beautifully describes his feelings during his surgery with lyrics such as "She gave me a magic potion. I feel asleep in her loving arms. I trusted her completely to keep me safe from harm. But, while I was sleeping, she pulled out all the tools and I woke up on a table, feeling like a drunken fool."
Keb’ Mo’s latest recording also comes out following a period of profound personal upheaval and the end of his nearly 20-year marriage. Despite his troubles, the Americana Music Lifetime achievement winner talks about hope, love and moving forward.
"One difficult moment on the record was the song called "Every Step of the Way". That was mostly done by Lauren Lucas. She came up with the lyric. I poured my heart out when we were trying to write this song. When you write with people you have to get to know each other real quick and you can't hold back things. You have to really talk about life so you can down to the nitty gritty of the story you're trying to tell which will hopefully inspire and help people move their lives along too. That song is my favorite one on the album. It just tells my whole story."
The first single released from The Breakdown is titled "Fussing and Fighting" and the tune could just as easily reflect a long-term relationship as a divided nation searching for common ground.
While eight of the songs are stripped down to just Keb' Mo's voice and guitar, he’s also carefully selected vocal contributions from the Soweto Gospel Choir and the gospel sextet Take 6.
"I've encountered Take 6 several times and we always talked about doing something together. We were on the Chris Botti cruise. All those guys are tight. They always have breakfast together, hanging, they're like a mob (laughs), they're like a six-headed singing monster with one body. I guess when "They Don't Make 'Em Like They Used To" came up, that's when I called up Take 6."
You can SEE the entire interview with Keb' Mo' below:
