The Oscar-winning Hollywood legend Morgan Freeman has just announced that he will be releasing his debut album and first single this summer at the age of 89.
Freeman Announces Blues Album
Freeman announced on Friday that he will be releasing a 12-track blues album called Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience on August 7.
“I heard the blues for the first time on my grandmother’s porch in the Mississippi Delta, and it has never left me,” Freeman said in a press release.
Freeman will be joined on this album by Taj Mahal, Keb’ Mo’, Lawrence “Boo” Mitchell, and Shemekia Copeland. In addition, the Chineke! Orchestra will be featured.
Freeman, who is the narrator of this album, celebrated Juneteenth on Friday with the release of the first single off the album, “Death Letter Blues.”
“Having Taj Mahal kick off this album with a cover of Son House’s classic ‘Death Letter Blues’ strikes the perfect tone for the introduction of this album,” Freeman stated. “Releasing this on Juneteenth is not just symbolic — it is the truth of where this music comes from and who made it. I hope people listen and remember.”
“Juneteenth felt like the only right date to introduce this powerful single. This music was born from the same history that Juneteenth commemorates,” added Eric Meier, a producer on the album. “‘Death Letter Blues’ is one of the rawest, most honest pieces in the American songbook, and hearing Taj Mahal inhabit it with a full symphony behind him — recorded between the hallowed walls of Royal Studios and Abbey Road — is something that is groundbreaking and unique. We’re incredibly proud to introduce our album with this track.”
Freeman has also announced a three-date tour in support of the album. These dates will include a show in Houston on August 7, a show on September 26 in Memphis and a show on October 17 in Gulfport, Mississippi.
Freeman’s Tracklist
Check out the official tracklist for Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience below:
1. Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground – Morgan Freeman ft. Keith Johnson
2. Crossroads – Super Chikan
3. Death Letter Blues – Taj Mahal
4. Dust My Broom – Lady Adrena
5. The Thrill Is Gone – Alvin Youngblood Hart
6. Cadillac Assembly Line – Keb’ Mo’
7. Somebody’s Knockin’ – Anthony Big A Sherrod
8. Traveling Riverside Blues – Shemekia Copeland
9. I’ll Take You There – Tiernii Jackson ft. Stax Music Academy Choir
10. Love Me Or Leave Me – Anthony Big A Sherrod
11. Someday – Anthony Big A Sherrod
12. I Lied To You – Keith Johnson
Aside from music, Freeman is currently starring on the Paramount+ show Lioness. On top of that, he recently narrated the Netflix documentary series The Dinosaurs. Indeed, after turning 89 earlier this month, Freeman is showing the world that age really is just a number by staying as busy as ever in the world of entertainment!
Freeman is a true living legend, and there will never be another one like him. After bringing us so much joy with his acting over the years, we can’t wait to see what Freeman can bring to the music world.
God bless you, Morgan Freeman!