Following years as the keyboardist and a vocalist of Anderson. Paak’s Grammy winning R&B and Soul band The Free Nationals, T.Nava is stepping into his own lane with a debut EP titled ‘Blackberry Mango.‘ Out today, the multi-faceted artist has channeled his years of soulful, cinematic experience into a three-track project releasing via Qwest Records.
Kicking off with lead single “Quarantina,” the song is a commentary speaking to all the missed connections due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Encapsulating T.Nava’s roots in funk and soul,”Quarantina” sets the ground work for the rest of the project’s distinctly old school flavor. “Con Artist” sees T.Nava jump onto the vocoder and keyboard for a introspective ballad featuring vocalist Ashley Jay. The final single, “GROUPIES” fuses the worlds of hip-hop and soul featuring Jose Rios and Maurice Brown who provide the song’s rapped verses.
Hailing from Cincinnati, Ohio, T.Nava is a self-taught pianist who began his professional career as a touring musician with Snoop Dogg, Will and Jaden Smith, Nas, Dr.Dre, Brother Ali, The Pharcyde, and Mayer Hawthorne. Real name Ron Jerome Avant, he began to earn credits as a writer for Macy Gray, Carmit Bachar (Pussycat Dolls), Bobby Brown, Jason Derulo, Chris Brown, Fergie, and Jhené Aiko.
In 2012, through his collaborative efforts, he officially joined forces with multi-instrumentalist, rapper, producer, and songwriter Anderson .Paak. As a result, soul-slapping albums LoveJoy (2012), Venice (2014), Yes, Lawd! (2016), Malibu (2016), Oxnard (2018), and Ventura (2019) were released – leading to tours internationally across Australia and Europe. Showing no signs of slowing down, T.Nava landed features on both the “Gidget” and “Oslo” tracks on The Free Nationals funky, eclectic self-titled album. The buzzworthy album led to guest appearances on major platforms such as The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Sway in the Morning, Complex, The Guardian, Forbes, Hot New Hip Hop and more.
T.NAVA “GIRLFRIEND” LIVE FT. ANDERSON. PAAK: