'A Safe Place To Be Wild' is the seventh LP from Jordan Rakei, arriving after more than a decade of pushing the boundaries of soul, jazz and alternative R&B. Fearless, intimate and emotionally direct, the album finds Jordan embracing uninhibited self-expression and placing vulnerability at the centre of his songwriting. Stripping everything back to raw feeling and unfiltered moments, 'A Safe Place To Be Wild' captures an artist fully stepping into himself, confronting the fear of exposing his inner world and finding power in doing so.

TRACK LISTING

1. Eden
2. Promise
3. Would Ya Mind
4. Enemies
5. Grace
6. Paradise
7. Games
8. From The Outside
9. Mirror
10. Go
11. I'm Out
12. If I
13. Pub
14. Whispers in the Wind

Jordan Rakei’s 'Between Us' EP captures a moment of pure creative exchange, bringing together a handpicked circle of collaborators including FKJ, Jalen Ngonda, Nubya Garcia, Tom McFarland (Jungle) and Femi Koleoso (Ezra Collective). Built from spontaneous one-day sessions at Abbey Road, each track holds onto the immediacy and honesty of those first ideas, resulting in a collection that feels both intimate and expansive.

Blending soulful production, rich instrumentation and a collaborative spirit, 'Between Us' showcases Jordan not just as a songwriter and producer, but as a curator of sound, uniting distinct voices into one cohesive world. Available on 12" vinyl for the first time, this limited pressing offers a tangible way to experience the EP’s rich, cinematic sound in full.

TRACK LISTING

1. What It Gave Me (ft Jalen Ngonda)
2. Easy To Love (ft Tom McFarland)
3. It Never Ends (ft Femi Koleoso)
4. Problems (ft FKJ)
5. Monsters (ft Nubya Garcia)

GRAMMY-award nominated Jordan Rakei is a renowned multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, producer, and songwriter who, over soon-to-be-five studio albums, has been on a wide-ranging journey that explores the outer reaches of his inner psyche, traversing themes of emotional evolution, personal growth and family with unwavering sincerity. Always positioning himself in and amongst the bigger questions in life, he has navigated his musical journey with passion and precision, unveiling something new about himself through his songwriting at every turn. The Loop is by far Rakei’s most cohesive and evolutionary work to date following an impressive career of previous releases, each of which have demonstrated his natural curiosity and capabilities in exploring new sounds.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Another stunningly assured, confidently presented outing from soulful jazz-tronica hero Jordan Rakei. The Loop sees his once minimal sound blooming into a grand, orchestrated statement that's as bold as it is heartfelt. There are as many brittle, tender progressions as there are cinematic swells and rich Bonobo-like grooves.

TRACK LISTING

1. Flowers
2. Freedom
3. Friend Or Foe
4. Royal
5. Trust
6. State Of Mind
7. Hopes And Dreams
8. Learning
9. Cages
10. Forgive
11. Everything Everything
12. Miracle
13. A Little Life

Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, producer, and songwriter Jordan Rakei returns with his fourth studio album, "What We Call Life’". Diving even deeper into his sound world, merging electronic with acoustic, and rugged grooves with ambient atmospheres, to create something richer, more detailed, and more textural than before. Rakei, already a practitioner of meditation and mindfulness, was curious about the potential of using therapy for further self-discovery. During the process, he began to learn more about his behaviour patterns and anxieties, and addressed his long-standing irrational phobia of birds – a fear often associated with the unpredictable and the unknown, and something explored in the album’s creative direction and visuals.

‘What We Call Life’ is Jordan Rakei’s most vulnerable and intimate album to date. Its lyrics concern the lessons that the New Zealand-born, Australia-raised, and London-based artist learned about himself during therapy, a journey that began two years ago when he started reading about the ‘positive psychology’ movement. These themes manifest on songs like lead single “Family”, which Rakei says is “the most personal” he’s ever been with his lyrics. “I wanted to hit my vulnerability barrier and be really honest. It’s about my parents’ divorce in my mid-teens but still having love for them no matter what,” he explains.

Artwork was created by Canadian-born, Los Angeles-based visual artist Justin Tyler Close (who has worked previously with the likes of Laura Marling), who resonated with the themes on Rakei’s album. The image was created in a remote photo shoot, with Rakei sending images over the internet that were projected onto a sheet and photographed by Close. The melancholic images reflect the title of the record, a question that Rakei would sometimes ask himself during a period of his childhood in which he suffered a great deal of anxiety: Is this what we call life? Rather than accepting defeat, the title is today a commentary on the more happy, confident, and assured person and artist that Jordan Rakei is today

STAFF COMMENTS

Millie says: Jordan Rakei fourth album is highly anticipated here at Piccadilly, the album explores themes worn close to Rakei’s sleeve. Personal and moving, the track ‘Family’ is so beautiful and soulful.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Family
A2. Send My Love
A3. Illusion
A4. Unguarded
A5. Clouds
B1. What We Call Life
B2. Runaway
B3. Wings
B4. Brace
B5. The Flood

“I wanted to try and showcase as many people as I knew on this mix. My idea of Late Night Tales was to distil a series of relaxing moments; the whole conceptual sonic of relaxation. So, I was trying to think of all the collaborators and friends that I knew, who’d recorded stuff with this horizontal vibe. Plus, I was also trying to help my friends' stuff get into the world. I know the story of Khruangbin blowing up after appearing on the series (in fact, I think that's how I discovered them). So, the main idea was to create a certain atmosphere, but also to help some of my favourite collaborators and bud- dies to give their songs a little push out into the world. Hope you like it” Jordan Rakei.

Late Night Tales celebrate their 20th anniversary with the release of multi-instru- mentalist, vocalist and producer Jordan Rakei’s majestic compilation. The 28-year-old modern soul icon effortlessly stamps his own jazz and hip-hop driven sound all over this gorgeous array of handpicked tracks. A beautifully layered blend that is mirrored in the music he’s made, it comes as no surprise that such a supremely gifted songwriter should deliver a mix that is all about the song.

Rakei, born in New Zealand, but raised in Australia, moved to the UK in 2015; he released his debut album, Cloak, with Oz label Soul Has No Tempo, but his two subsequent LPs, Wallflower and Origin, came out on Ninja Tune, the former #2 in Album Of The Year for Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide poll, while Origin was nominated for Best Album at the AIM Awards. Jordan had this to say on his upcoming mix:

As Jordan says, there’s so much more to the song selection on Late Night Tales’ latest outing than a random collection of artists. Many have some sort of personal connection, so just as Bonobo provided a platform for the breakout of Khruangbin on a previous LNT, this may have the same effect for Rakei’s friends. After a soothing opener from Fink, good friend and big influence Alfa Mist (part of the Are We Live collective) delivers ‘Mulago.’ “I want to champion their sound and show the world how good he is, and I thought it’d be fitting to start the mix with family,” says Jordan.

Next up is Charlotte Day Wilson with ‘Mountains,’ followed by ‘Count A Heart’ from Moreton, an exclusive collaboration with Jordan, who grew up on the same street in Brisbane, Australia. “She was the first artist I ever collaborated with, and one of the first artists to be involved in my career,” he explains. Elsewhere we hear Scottish producer and multi-instrumentalist C Duncan’s haunting ‘He Came from the Sun,’ Barcelona collective Oso Leone deliver a dreamy ‘Virtual U’ and Bill Lauren’s ‘Singularity,’ which evokes a striking sense of time and place.

Snowpoet’s ethereal ‘Evitenity’ is a “long mediative narrative over a beautiful soundscape,” which at times seems chaotic, nicely juxtaposed with undeniable beauty, and Maro’s kooky songwriting shines on ‘Always And Forever.’ Long-time buddy Armon-Jones contributes ‘Idiom,’ and Jordan’s exclusive cover version is a two-for-one, Radiohead’s ‘Codex’ merging with ‘Lover, You Should’ve Come Home’ by Jeff Buckley and another exclusive, original com- position by Jordan, ‘Imagination.’ The latter works as a piece with the spoken (Spanish) word voiced by movie director Alejandro González Iñárritu (Babel, Birdman, and The Reve- nant,) who is a big fan of Jordan’s. “He messaged me when I went to L.A and asked to come to my show. I was in such shock and we hung out after. I thought it would be nice to get him to do this in his native tongue, because I don’t think that’s been done yet on the series.” It certainly is a family affair. Not the blood is thicker than water kind, but certainly musical kindred spirits.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: There are very few labels as influential in the compilation game as Late Night Tales, and this newest outing from Jordan Rakei is one of the best yet. Flitting between downbeat jazz business and more ambient pieces, this collection is perfect for popping on and zoning out to. Brilliantly paced and superbly selected, this is a fascinating insight into Rakei's influences, and most of all, a great listen.

TRACK LISTING

Mixed CD Version
Incl. Unmixed Tracks Via Download As MP3 / FLAC/ WAV
1. Fink - Covering Your Tracks
2. Alfa Mist – Mulago
3. Charlotte Day Wilson – Mountains
4. Moreton Feat. Jordan Rakei – Count A Heart (Exclusive Track)
5. Puma Blue – Untitled 2
6. Connan Mockasin – Momo’s
7. C Duncan - He Came From The Sun
8. Oso Leone – Virtual U
9. Joe Armon-Jones - Idiom Ft. Oscar Jerome
10. Snowpoet – Eviternity
11. MARO – Forever & Always
12 Homay Schmitz – Speak Up
13. Bill Laurance - Singularity
14 Jordan Rakei - Lover, You Should've Come Over (Exclusive Jeff Buckley Cover Version)
15 Jordan Rakei – Codex (Exclusive Radiohead Cover Version)
16. Cubicolor - Counterpart
17. Jordan Rakei – Imagination (Exclusive New Track)
18. Alejandro González Iñárritu - Imagination (Exclusive Spoken Word Piece)

Unmixed Vinyl Version
(includes Mixed And Unmixed Tracks As Download As MP3 / FLAC / WAV)
A1. Fink - Covering Your Tracks
A2. Alfa Mist - Mulago
A3. Charlotte Day Wilson - Mountains
A4. Moreton Feat Jordan Rakei - Count A Heart (Exclusive Track)
B1. Puma Blue - Untitled 2
B2. Connan Mockasin - Momo's
B3. C Duncan - He Came From The Sun
B4. Oso Leone - Virtual U
B5. Joe Armon-Jones & Maxwell Owin - Idiom Ft Oscar Jerome
C1. Snowpoet - Everternity
C2. Maro - Forever & Always
C3. Homay Schmitz - Speak Up
C4. Bill Laurence - Singularity
D1. Jordan Rakei - Lover, You Should've Come Over (Exclusive Jeff Buckley Cover Version)
D2. Cubicolour - Counterpart
D3. Jordan Rakei - Imagination(Exclusive New Track)
D4. Alejandro González Iñárritu - Imagination (Exclusive Spoken Word Piece)

Soulful, intimate and expansive all at once, Jordan Rakei’s third album, "Origin", cuts straight to the point. The melodies are brighter, the sound is bigger and the vision behind it more finely-tuned. Switching up from the highly personal and intimate portrait he painted with 2017’s "Wallflower", which was a way of grappling with his experience of anxiety and introversion, "Origin" is overtly inspired by dystopian visions of our future - notably Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and David Lynch’s Twin Peaks. 'I’m worried that we’re losing a sense of connection,' explains Jordan, with many of the album lyrics exploring technological growth, and how it affects our sense of humanity. For example, new single "Say Something" is 'about speaking up for what you believe in; a call to arms for future humans to stand up against the AI systems which govern a now-dystopian world. It follows recent single "Mind’s Eye", which envisions a future world where malfunctioning tech implanted in the human body has flooded the users mind with projections of chaos. He meditates daily, something he adopted partly in response to his issues with anxiety, and something which has shaped his worldview and informed his writing and production process.

On "Origin", Rakei has scaled up his ambitions, and is more confident in the way he goes about achieving them. Making tracks that speak more confidently, in brighter colours, and which deal with something bigger than himself. He channeled the classic songwriting and musicality of his heroes Stevie Wonder and Steely Dan, striving to surprise and delight with the form of his work, and always infusing it with the same effortless swing and human feel that he fell in love with listening to A Tribe Called Quest, Pete Rock and 9th Wonder.

STAFF COMMENTS

Millie says: Rakei returns with his new sublime album, exploring themes of a technological and a dystopian future while producing the best jazz groves around topped with soulful vocals. Absolutely gorgeous stuff!

TRACK LISTING

01. Mad World
02. Say Something
03. Mind’s Eye
04. Rolling Into One
05. Oasis
06. Wildfire
07. Signs
08. You & Me
09. Moda
10. Speak
11. Mantra