Jojo Makes Triumphant Return With Mad Love – Her First Album As An Adult & Her First In A Decade
It was a delight to meet Jojo whose Massachusetts/New Hampshire roots are close to mine. She takes pride in being from New England and both states are represented among her tattoos; the latter in the form of the ‘Live Free Or Die’ motto. The artist, who was the youngest solo singer to have a number-one single in the United States, doesn’t have any kind of child star hangover on her adult personality. That’s not to say she didn’t go through something of a horror show to make it to this point. She did. However, in speaking with her, it was impossible to detect any self-absorption or (certainly not) self-pity due to the record company machinations that derailed her music career for many years. She stressed that she had a brilliant time in the first phase of her career while her self-titled debut from 2004 and the follow up The High Road made her a star.
As far as the business aspects that slowed her down, Jojo is eager to put them all behind her but patiently explained having to sue her record company twice before being able to seize control of her own future. As she said to me during our chat at NY1 Studios in Chelsea, ‘we choose how we react to things.” The process was painful as she looked upon her original label as a family but she did what she needed to do and it was part of her experience of growing up. The now 25 year old has a strong and resilient spirit that may be, even more than her phenomenal voice, the most important element to her vitality as an artist. As the melodies and song-craft on the new album make plain, she also has an exquisite ear. Mad Love came out on Friday, October 14th, 2016.
Jojo is planning a full-on tour but is doing an intimate record release party tonight in the Meatpacking District at 837NYC.