nu-soul news.

Alright, maybe not strictly nu-soul, much more r&b news, but D'Angelo sure is nu-soul, as he almost invented the genre. 

Following his incredible come-back earlier this year, D'Angelo keeps providing people with his off the hook liver performing abilities. The last one was given at the BET Awards, and is downloadable here. 

Another friend of The Roots and Okayplayer, the unique Cody ChesnuTT, is planning on releaseing his new album really soon. To do so, the author of "The Seed", needs money. 

This being said, I take profit of the occasion to elaborate a little bit on this old-new phenomenon : patronage (or sponsorship). For centuries, it has been a way of living for artists, which, most of the time, has ensured them with freedom of creativity. I'm not far from thinking that this is the best system for artists to make a living out of their art. 

With the new platforms of patronage for artists, such as Kickstarter or My Major Company, it's actually this old system that is coming back. The principle is simple and healthy : if you like an artist enough, you can pledge and participate in the financing of his projects. And considering you sometimes get to have special items from the artist in return, it's a good deal. 

So, back on Cody's next album, it sounds promising from the first track we heard, "Everybody's Brother", performed live both in a recording studio and on stage in Paris yesterday. To fund his "Landing On A Hundred" album, Cody ChesnuTT needs $20,000 and you can contribute on Kickstarter. 44 days to go.

Considering the creativity displayed on "The Headphone Masterpiece", "Landing On A Hundred" will be great for sure. 

And last but not least, as announced a few weeks ago, Frank Ocean will release his debut proper album "Channel Orange" soon. Among the featurings, you will hear Earl Sweatshirt, John Mayer and André 3000. 

Again, this sounds promising.