Marc Broussard

From the banks of the Bayou comes the soulful singing of Marc Broussard and his debut Carencro — a nod to his hometown in Louisiana. As the liner notes profess, he calls himself, "a white boy singing soul music.” After only one listen, you realise that this statement is an oversimplification. Music is in Broussard’s genes as his father Ted is a Louisiana Hall of Fame guitarist. The 22-year-old singer-songwriter offers a brand of soul that melds the best of Motown’s classics with Southern church gospels. His style also recalls the musical spirit of the late, great Ray Charles. Love and loneliness weave their way into most of the songs in one form or another, like on the opening, high-octane and hypnotic "Home.” On this homage to his roots, hand claps and stomps, along with the song’s repetitive chorus of "take me home,” enrapture the listener with its Bayou beat. "The Wanderer” is an acoustically-inclined ballad of a loner’s existence that is more akin to the styles of Jack Johnson and Ben Harper. Here, Broussard is backed by the angelic voices of the Carencro Symphony Orchestra Gospel Choir. From the R&B of "Rocksteady” to the heartbroken "Lonely Night in Georgia,” Broussard reminds one of a male Joss Stone — a young singer with a voice that scales the octaves and sings with a cup brimming with soul.