Multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer Julius Rodriguez has announced his new album Evergreen, his second LP on Verve Records, will be released on June 14th. The record’s first single, “Mission Statement,” and its accompanying music video are out now.
Rodriguez made Evergreen in his new home Los Angeles, after relocating from his hometown of New York City in 2022. There, he worked with producer Tim Anderson, whose previous credits include work with Solange, Halsey, and Billie Eilish. Evergreen is composed of new original works from Rodriguez along with a cover of Dijon’s “Many Times.” The album also includes features from Keyon Harrold, Nate Mercereau, and Georgia Anne Muldrow.
Julius shares: “This album for me embodies the meaning of ‘Evergreen.’ With the differing worlds that are presented by each track, I still aim to be fully honestly myself in my expression–maintaining my voice in any variation of musical climate. With this, I hope to carry on the importance of prioritizing the music itself, rather than letting a genre or label create a preconceived connotation of the music. The genre is me.”
The single “Mission Statement” is also the album’s first track, setting the tone for the record. “In terms of the name, I’m not just trying to be the jazz musician that everyone knew me as,” Julius says of the single. “My vision was to create a different sound that’s unique to my influence. My mission is to break out of what people know and expect of me and just do what I like.”
Julius has always worked outside the boundaries of genre, with NPR describing his solo debut with Verve, Let Sound Tell All, as “a project so dynamic that even the umbrella of jazz couldn’t quite contain its essence.”
Rodriguez honed his voice during his childhood in New York, where he participated in his first late-night jam session at barely eleven years-old. Now, at just 25 years-old, Rodriguez has toured and performed around the globe, including at the iconic North Sea Jazz Festival and Newport Jazz Festival.
