Subscribe

* indicates required
Okayplayer News

To continue reading

Create a free account or sign in to unlock more free articles.

By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy

Jesse Boykins III Performs "4 U 2 B Free" A Capella Live In A Mardi Gras Warehouse
Jesse Boykins III Performs "4 U 2 B Free" A Capella Live In A Mardi Gras Warehouse

Jesse Boykins III Performs "4 U 2 B Free" A Cappella Live In A Mardi Gras Warehouse

Jesse Boykins III Performs "4 U 2 B Free" A Capella Live In A Mardis Gras Warehouse

Jesse Boykins III gave us a rare taste of his airy baritone in a harrowing a cappella performance of his minimal number "4 U 2 B Free" in a storage warehouse for Mardi Gras floats as part of the latest installment of NPR's Field Recordings. As the story goes, Boykins stumbled upon the circus of a warehouse in the aftermath of his Essence Music Festival performance, finding himself surrounded by cartoonish figures, ladders to nowhere and all of the Mardi Gras furnishings you can imagine.

Stripped bare of its drum-track and the whispering six-string lilts, Boykins shows us the tender underbelly of his jones-soaked ballad surrounded by the vestiges of N'awlins' flagship ritual. It's kind of spooky, but it works on so many levels. The treated version of the track can be found on JB3's impressive Love Apparatus LP, which is available to purchase via iTunes today. If you're looking for some more stripped-down audible gold, go back and watch the ladies of KING do the damn thing in a record shop in The Big Easy. Treat yourself to Jesse Boykins III's powerful a cappella performance of "4 U 2 B Free" live on NPR's Field Recordings down below.