Tobias Jesso Jr. came out of nowhere, and he disappeared back into the background nearly as quickly. In 2015, the tall, bushy-headed Canadian became a low-key sensation with his debut album Goon, a set of piano-led pop songs that tapped into a ’70s singer-songwriter zeitgeist that was percolating in indie music at the time.
Jesso was no fan of touring and other forms of promotion, and his strengths lied more in writing than performing, so Jesso left the spotlight behind to become a behind-the-scenes figure instead. He’s done well for himself, finding steady work with stars like Adele and Haim. This year, he won the first-ever Grammy for Songwriter Of The Year, and last week he was nominated for the same award again, having worked with the likes of Bon Iver, Dijon, HAIM, Justin Bieber, Maren Morris, Miley Cryus, and Olivia Dean this year. He’s in the credits for the boldly ambitious new RosalÃa album, too. Now he’s ready to step back into the spotlight.
Next week Jesso will release s h i n e, his second album and first in a decade. He wrote the songs during a six-week sabbatical this year but says they represent the culmination of a decade of personal growth. According to a press release, “The eight songs are about himself, his mom, his son, a breakup and his life at this moment in time, with some help from Danielle Haim, Eli Teplin, Julian Bunetta, Justin Vernon, Rosie Hamilton, Tommy King and a psychic.” Jesso produced, with mixing by Shawn Everett.
Today we get our first preview via a video for lead single “I Love You.” For most of its runtime, the song is a classic Jesso piano ballad, but it takes a left turn into some surprise clamor near the end. Director Christopher Ripley’s video features cameos from music-adjacent movie stars Dakota Johnson and Riley Keough, and you can watch it below.
TRACKLIST:
01 “Waiting Around”
02 “Black Magic”
03 “Bridges”
04 “Green Eyes”
05 “Everything May Soon Be Gone”
06 “Rain”
07 “I Love You”
08 “Lullaby”
s h i n e is out 11/21 on R&R.
Justin Chung
