J. Holiday returns with his sophomore album "Round 2" on March 10. Check out the album cover!
Featuring production by StreetLove production/writing team members Big Reese (Mario, T.I., Andre 3000, Pink) and Jasper Cameron (Ciara, Tiffany Evans, Christina Aguilera) and collaborations with the likes of Cee-Lo and Rick Ross, Round 2 is poised to solidify Mr. Holiday's status as the commander of seductive street soul.
Round 2 is dense, deliberate, and destined for the rarified air gulped in by Back of My ‘Lac. But again, critical and commercial triumph isn’t enough for J. Holiday. He’s tackling weighty issues, another anomaly given today’s artists’ reluctance to stick their necks out. The song “Homeless,” featuring Cee-Lo, is probing social commentary. It’s also the precursor to a larger endeavor: “I’m working on a homeless awareness campaign,” he shares.
“I’m actually in the process of starting a foundation. I’m just trying to do my part; it’s an issue I feel people don’t pay enough attention to. It’s always been in the back of my mind, and now I’m in a position to better address it. This isn’t to get any personal recognition, it’s just to show how many people this still affects. I’m coming at this not looking at myself first at all.” J. plans to appear in a TV commercial, dressed in rags and posing as an indigent on New York City’s unforgiving streets, as passersby step over him. Another admirable feather in J. Holiday’s familiar fedora, although this writer’s half-serious suggestion that the campaign’s motto be “I’m a give you a bed, bed, bed,” was laughingly dismissed.
J. Holiday has made a home in fans’ hearts and ears. In turn, his epic one-year odyssey has opened his own eyes: “Being inside the game has given me a whole different perspective. I would like to think that I’m very good at what I do, and I believe in my craft, but I still feel blessed. I have done a lot more than some very talented people who were in my position at one point in time, in the timeframe that I’ve done it. I’m still new to all this. But I can’t worry myself about what other people are doing. I know just by staying me, my music is going to stand on its own.” So too will the world stand, and applaud.
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