Gregory Porter is probably the hottest male-vocal property on the jazz scene in 2014 – and he’s likely to be especially hot in his trademark suit and hat when he performs at both Love Supreme and Brecon Jazz this summer!

His appeal is clear – a charismatic personality, with an intriguing back-story, and a voice….

Well, what a voice!

Porter, who has achieved fame (and a Grammy award) in his 40s, only turned to singing after injury ended a promising football career, but singing was always a part of his life. When his (single) mum played Nat King Cole records at home, he apparently imagined Nat was his dad.

His powerful voice shares Nat’s smoothness, and seamlessly crosses genres – Gregory is a jazzman for sure, but that’s a soul voice, and his songs (he also writes music and lyrics) veer into R&B too.

It all helps explain why he has gained such widespread popularity in the past couple of years. In the UK, it wasn’t long ago, you’d only hear him on Jazz FM. Now, he’s a regular on mainstream BBC Radio 2, and on TV too.

No wonder he’s in such demand, and will be among the top acts at both the Love Supreme Festival (on Sunday, July 6) and Brecon Jazz (on Sunday, August 10).

You can find ticket info for Love Supreme here and for Brecon Jazz here.

You may be interested in this previous post about the two festivals, and this one about extra acts at Love Supreme. There are also my reviews of last year’s Love Supreme and Brecon festivals.