Music Artist Spotlight - Allen Stone

I love Allan Stone. Recently was introduced to Allen Stone's music by a friend of mine - thanks Nolyn! :) He reminds me of Remy Shand and Musiq Soulchild. The first song was on YouTube titled "Consider Me". Now I don't know if it's because Valentine's Day was yesterday and I'm in my feelings because I found someone I really want to spend the rest of my life with or if it's just love is in the air, but this is amazing. I immediately noticed Taye Diggs in the video and I've always been a fan, so I had to keep watching. When I heard Allan Stone start singing, I was immediately hooked. I had to find out who this guy is. I haven't heard of him yet. Here's that amazing video - and PLEASE subscribe to his YouTube channel, "LIKE" his video and show him some love. We support artists!!

Yeah. I cried. What can I say, I'm a big softie. Then I wiped away the tears, sent the video to my lovely lady, and told her she MUST watch it as soon as she gets off work. I then wiped away more tears, took a deep breath, and Google'd Allen Stone's name. He's WHAT?? He's from WASHINGTON STATE! Holy $h!t! Mind blown. Now I really must be out of touch because I ... well, I've been a DJ for decades and I used to think I knew every "new and upcoming artist" out of the Pacific Northwest.  Boy was I surprised!

Allen was born March 13th 1987 in a place called Chewelah. Now I'm not going to pretend like I know how to pronounce that, I have heard it but pronounced different ways. It's near Spokane. He began his singing career at his father's church.  His pops was a preacher and his ma was an OB/GYN nurse. He started singing at church... when he was only three years old. By the age of 14 Allen was leading worship at his church and playing the guitar. The draw of music for Allen was mainly being able to express himself to crowds of people. 

Allen didn't discover soul music however until he was a teenager, and started collecting classic albums from the 60's & 70's. He was 15 when he heard Stevie Wonder's 1973 album Innervisions.

When Stacie Orrico, a close friend of Allen's as a teen, became successful in music Stone decided to become serious about his musical career. Orrico released a record and had become successful. "She was traveling, singing everywhere, and recording" Stone related. "She was just a year older than me and I was like, 'Man that would be so much fun to do, sing and actually have people listen.'"

When Stone was 18 he moved to Spokane and went to community college for a semester followed by a year at Moody Bible Institute in Spokane. After that year Stone had an epiphany. He stated in an interview with SF Gate - "I learned the history of the church and the conception of the Bible and learned about the religion and really just.. like... didn't believe it.  I got to the point where it was like 'I don't believe this is the truth.'" Not long after he moved to Seattle to pursue his musical career. 

He's released FOUR records - Last To Speak in 2010, self-released - the self-titled album Allen Stone in 2011 on ATO Records - Radius in 2015 on Capitol Records and Building Balance in 2019 on ATO Records.  Radius was also re-released by ATO Records in 2016 as a deluxe edition with seven additional tracks. 

Stone has been touring cross-country for a few years and sold a self-released album on the internet. However, it wasn't until October 2011 when his second album was released that boosted his career. On this album he was backed by Raphael Saadiq's rhythm section and Miles Davis' keyboardis Deron Johnson. A few songs on Allen Stone were co-written with Andy Grammer. Allen Stone peaked at the number 2 spot on the R&B/Soul charts on iTunes and hit number 9 and number 35 on the Billboard Heatseekers and R&B/Hip-Hop Album Charts respectively. USA Today called Allen Stone a "pitch-perfect powerhouse".

You can read more about Allen Stone's career here.  I seriously suggest listening to him. A lot. A whole lot. It's good for your soul.  In fact, I'll drop a few more YouTube videos here so you can enjoy them yourself. I will be following this amazing artist and vocalist for a long time, I hope.