US R&B musician Jill Scott is working on a new studio album in 2026 titled ‘To Whom This May Concern’. This is her first full-length album in eleven years.
The neo-soul queen is not just a singer but also a model, a poet, and is involved in the make-believe industry as well. Speaking on why it took her so long for a new body of work, the fifty-three-year-old said in a recent interview with Elle magazine, “I’ve been livin’, honey. That’s what it is.”
Taking a break from the studio gave her more family time, Scott said, and she continued to develop her acting career, working on projects such as the BET series “First Wives Club.” Now, though, Scott has returned to the music world with her sixth studio record, “To Whom This May Concern.”
“There’s a lot of soul, a lot of passion, a lot of honesty in this music,” Scott told Elle. “It’s all been spirit-driven and organic.”
The 11-track collection was released on Feb. 13 by Scott’s label, Blues Babe Records, and distributed by Human Re Sources and The Orchard. Scott is an independent artist these days, and she creates music on her own timetable.
“It was necessary to take a long break,” Scott said via a question-and-answer session posted by The Guardian. “I don’t think you can create art without having some living in between, and there were reasons to make some major changes. I cut some people out of my life, some ideas … I was paying attention to social media and people have got angrier. There are a lot of reasons for that, and a lot of what’s happening is unsettling, but I wanted to present a private or personal revolution.”
Two singles from the album have been released this year, “Beautiful People” and “Pressha.” Scott also performed “Beautiful People” for her five-song Tiny Desk Concert, which made its debut on Monday via National Public Radio.
Trombone Shorty is a featured artist on “To Whom This May Concern,” as well as rappers Too Short, Tierra Whack, Ab-Soul and JID. Several producers worked on the record, including Seige Monstracity and DJ Premier.
Jill Scott is a three-time Grammy winner with 14 nominations, famed for songs such as “Golden,” “Cross My Mind,” “So in Love,” “Whatever,” and “Blessed.”
Her 2000 breakthrough album, “Who Is Jill Scott?: Words and Sounds Vol. 1,” sold more than 2 million copies, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. Scott followed that with successful albums such as “Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds Vol. 2″ and “The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3.”
The R&B Queen showcased songs from “To Whom This May Concern” on Feb. 14 at the Blue Note jazz club in New York City, celebrating the project on Valentine’s Day. It’s unclear, however, if she’ll hit the road to promote the new album. Right now, the only concert date on Scott’s agenda is March 26 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, as a headliner for HBCU Aware Fest.
Scott has performed in Alabama over the years, including shows in Birmingham, Mobile and Tuscaloosa.
“Her spectacular vocal abilities were much on display, along with a penchant for genre-hopping: R&B to hip-hop to jazz to classical to poetry,” AL.com said in a review of Scott’s 2013 show at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena. “Scott blended a queenly presence with homegirl sass, tucked snugly into the pocket of her nine-member band.
“The singer held nothing back, yet her flow seemed effortless as she climbed the joyful heights and plumbed the sorrowful depths of melody and lyrics. Highlights of Scott’s hourlong show included ‘Whatever’ and ‘Cross My Mind,’ but truly, this gifted vocalist and inventive wordsmith can do no wrong on stage.”
We’ve got the edge. Get real-time reports, breaking scoops, and exclusive angles delivered straight to your phone. Don’t settle for stale news. Join LEADERSHIP NEWS on WhatsApp for 24/7 updates →
Join Our WhatsApp Channel
