Ledisi’s new album, The Crown, happened unexpectedly. It all started with a life-changing phone call she received last July. “I got this call to do the Super Bowl,” the Grammy-winning singer tells Rated R&B over a Zoom call.
It’s an April afternoon, and the singer, whose name means “to bring forth” in Yoruba, is surrounded by speakers in a recording studio. She’s dressed in all black, wearing oversized cat-eye glasses and shining gold hoops. “I got this call to do the Super Bowl,” she shares. “It was like, what? Because my plan was to sit this out a little bit, and all of a sudden, boom.”
At that point, she had her song “Love You Too” tucked away. “‘Love You Too’ came, and we were excited. It was just going to be that. I was like, ‘I’m just going to do the single and have it ready in case I want to go back on the road, but I’m not interested in doing anything else.’”
The opportunity to perform at the Super Bowl sparked the idea of recording a follow-up to 2024’s Good Life. The latter album housed her No. 1 hit “I Need To Know,” which topped the Billboard Adult R&B Airplay chart for two weeks. Ledisi credits her longtime collaborator, producer and songwriter Rex Rideout, for giving her nerve-calming advice. “Rex goes, ‘Don’t put any pressure on it. Just write. Don’t think about it. Just paint. Don’t put a deadline on it or you’ll be stressed out,” she says. “That was the best gift ever: just paint here, paint there, paint there.”
The New Orleans native says every other week, she would “do two songs and see how that felt.” She allowed her feelings — those creative instincts — to be the driving force behind creating her sonic portraits. Her first unveiling was “Love You Too,” released two weeks before her performance at Super Bowl LIX, where she performed a stirring rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” backed by 125 New Orleans students. “I’m still processing it,” she reflects. “I’m still like, ‘Wow, that’s the biggest stage I’ve ever played in my life.’”
Ledisi acknowledges that she felt all sorts of pressure, but “also a pressure of, ‘God, I belong here. Thank you. I’m not going to let you down. I’m going to remind us who we are.” That sort of empowerment and assurance flows like liquid gold throughout The Crown, released April 25 via her label Listen Back Entertainment/BMG.
The Crown is Ledisi at her most instinctive. She didn’t go into it with any preconceived notions other than to just make art, however and whenever, without forcing it. The result? A body of work that’s as pure as 24 karats. And like the precious metal, each song had to be mined from within.
“Everything had to be intentional about the writing, meaning let it be natural, but also make a real point to it,” Ledisi notes. It’s as if each song is an artifact in a museum, showing how the New Orleans native is able to wear her crown with grace and sincerity. Love is one of its most essential components: love for self, for others, and for her Higher Power.
“BLKWMN,” a piano-laden ballad, channels the spirit of icons like Nina Simone as a beacon of empowerment for Black women. She honors Black women of the past, present, and future, honoring their brilliance, power, and perseverance. “From our history to our present, we’re still standing tall, creating, leading, and shaping the world,” Ledisi previously explained.
For the title track, she brings it back home to New Orleans with a guest appearance from Trombone Shorty. Produced by Camper, the song blends jazz, Bounce, gospel, hip-hop, and blues. It carries the warmth of a summer block party — a celebration where people from every walk of life come together with purpose. “All I am, He gave to me / There’s a crown I wear like royalty / And when it’s over now, I’ll wear the crown / The way I started and when it’s time to end,” Ledisi belts in the chorus.
Songs like the rose-scented “ENUF” and the spellbound “Daydreaming” explore love’s tender side, while the downcast “7 Days of Weak” and “All 4 U” grapple with its more turbulent moments. “I’m afraid to give you up,” she confesses in the latter track. The divine “Heaven” sees Ledisi turning to her faith to call on more love in a world where people would “rather tell you go to hell.” She continues, “But my advocate done post the bail / That’s why I talk about heaven.”
Below, Ledisi discusses her new album The Crown in depth, talks about her upcoming Love You Too Tour, and more.
Your new album, The Crown, comes a little over a year since Good Life. What was your mindset when making this project?
“Love You Too” came, and we were excited. It was just going to be “Love You Too.” I was like, “I’m just going to do the single and have it ready in case I want to go back on the road, but I’m not interested in doing anything else.” But July came, and I got this call to do the Super Bowl. It was like, what? Because my plan was to sit this out a little bit or put out a different album, and all of a sudden, boom. Rex [Rideout] goes, “Don’t put any pressure on it. Don’t put a deadline on it or you’ll be stressed out.”
So every other week, I’d do two songs and see how that felt. My writing was moving differently. I felt like writing. I felt like singing. I felt good when I sang. I kept asking, “Does that feel good?” Everything had to feel good. That’s the only plan I had. Everything had to be intentional about the writing, meaning let it be natural, but also make a real point to it. And that was it. No plan, no album title, no promotional marketing, nothing. Everything has come out naturally — even the way the Super Bowl happened [and] the way the songs have been coming out. I was like, “God, you’re just moving everything.”
Speaking of the Super Bowl, how was that experience for you?
I’m still processing it, honestly. I’m still like, “Wow, that’s the biggest stage I’ve ever played in my life.” The pressure of the song meaning so much to so many of our ancestors, it had a spiritual push on it, which makes everything bigger than I’ve ever experienced in my career. It blew me away.
The pride and the tears were of joy [because it] was a full circle moment — coming back to New Orleans after leaving when I was about nine, and seeing those babies behind me singing with me was me behind me as a child. It was a beautiful moment, and I didn’t do it alone. I had a great team. [Musical director] Adam Blackstone arranged it with his team. It was a group project.
You enlisted Trombone Shorty, another New Orleans native, for the title track. How important was it for you to collaborate from your hometown on this particular song?
When I heard the track, I immediately wanted him on it. I was praying that he would say yes, and he did. He was like, Absolutely, what do you want me to do on it? I said, I want you to be yourself and just play on it. And we loved it. That was added later, right at mastering, because we were trying to lift the song a bit and add more color. I started in classical and jazz, and then R&B was just always in my home. That’s New Orleans. We’ve been the hybrid genre of people like Jambalaya for years. To have Trombone Shorty on it, I’m so happy he agreed to it.
What’s the story behind “All 4 U”?
Rex sent it to me. I loved the way it made me feel. It had a little rock guitar on it. It’s soulful. Ethan Ridings is playing guitar on that. He’s amazing. We wrote it with Rex. I didn’t know what to write. I didn’t have a mood. I just knew Sade makes me feel good. I wanted that kind of energy, how she makes me feel. The song is like, “Where are we going with this? How are we going to make it through? Say how you feel if you want me or you don’t.” I didn’t have that going on in my relationship. It’s just something I talked about.
“7 Days of Weak” is a personal favorite on this album. Lyrically, it’s painful, but the way you sing it feels good and comforting. How did that one come about?
That was inspired by Rex playing these chords. Jacques [“Joc” Pierre] is a new writer-producer I’ve worked with. I like his writing style. We wrote a whole other song, and Rex started playing on his Rhodes. And Joc said, “Ah, I got an idea.” Rex made me go on the booth and sing what Joc was singing that chorus, and that was it. He couldn’t believe I laid it right there. I loved it.
The feeling behind it is we like the days of the week in life, but I love that I said, “Joc, we need to name it WEAK, because that’s what this whole thing is about. I’m weak without you for those whole seven days, naming all the days.” So he was like, “Absolutely.” So I helped write that with him, but he came up with most of it. He is amazing. It was a collaborative energy in here.
You and Rex Rideout are a dynamic duo who have been collaborating for many years now. What keeps that creative chemistry going?
Well, he’s the makeup of who I started with. That’s a 20-something-year relationship. He’s one of the three people who told me not to quit. He keeps me on the path. And we argue like cats and dogs (laughs). We do not always agree, but he is my yin and my yang in the music.
“Making A Way” is another standout on the album. It’s a real mood-booster. What was your intention with that one?
“Making a Way” kicked my butt (laughs). I love that song, I just couldn’t figure out what to do on it. When I did, it naturally reminded me of all the dance songs that had the spiritual undertones. It reminded me of this Tremaine Hawkins song that I love, “Fall Down (Spirit of Love),” and Luther Vandross’ “Bad Boy / Having a Party.” It has all the elements of R&B, soul and spirituality.
When I would feel bad after waiting tables years ago, I would go to this club called The Box where they played dance music, and I would just dance my heart out. It had nothing to do with who’s in the room. We would all be dancing together, and it made me feel better. I was free from being yelled at or not really doing my passion. I had to make a living and take care of myself.
I wanted to have a song on there that reminded me of that nostalgia, but also reminded me of Luther and that style of music that made me feel better. That’s what “Making a Way” did for me. I wrote that with Ray Keys. That was a hard, intricate song because of all the vocals. I had a small ensemble on it, and they did a great job navigating around other vocals that were on there. I’m hoping that the House DJs will love it, want to redo it and other people can sing and have fun.
How do you keep your crown intact during a time that feels tumultuous and uncertain?
You find moments of joy, and you hold tight to them. I don’t know what that joy could be: sleep, rest, working out, being with family, a good meal with music in the background, or music in your ears, or while you’re doing those things. That’s how I hold on, and I don’t get caught up. The end is when God said it’s the end. So I still have a chance to do something good. I still have the chance to do better the next day if I open my eyes. That’s how I keep my crown steady.
I’ve been told, You’re ugly. You’ll never make it. I’m still here. Even in the Super Bowl moment, I had so much of a whole wave of another energy that I chose to ignore. See, we have choices. Sometimes our choices are taken away, but we can choose how we navigate through. I refuse to go low with it. I want to be how I was raised. Immediately, I’m up here perched, honey!
Period! What can fans expect from your Love You Too Tour with Marsha Ambrosius?
I want you to escape, enjoy, feel good [with] great singers that are comfortable in their space. They know who they are. They’re OK with being whatever. Get away from the chaos for a minute. The hard-earned money you spent to come see us will not be in vain.I’m going to give you life, joy and some good feel-good. That’s all I can offer. That’s all I have with my art. I know Marsha is going to do the same. She always does. We’re going to have fun.
On two of the dates, Rahsaan Patterson will be with me in Detroit, and Kindred The Family Soul is going to be with me in Georgia. I pick people who uplift us. We need it right now. I’m using the gift in the calling. The Crown is a metaphor for the calling. It’s heavy, but I love it. I’m chosen and I’m OK with that.
Stream Ledisi’s new album The Crown below.
Featured photo by Ron T. Young
