INDIE REVIEW RADIO/ BRADD MARQUIS / INDIE ARTIST

Towering, boyishly handsome, and boasting a baritone dipped in the gravel and gravy of Southern soul, Marquis is one of the streets and the steeple. A committed man of dedicated faith and community service, Marquis is the anti-thesis of today’s R&B bad boys. Like his inspirations, Marquis started his stage life in front of the pews. Deriving from a rich family legacy of performers that includes blood ties to Phyllis Hyman, Debbie Allen, and Phylicia Rashad, Marquis traveled as a child performer in the “Family & Friends” gospel troupe. He rocked the church with preternaturally grown vocals until high school. A star-turning performance at a college show returned Marquis to music and later membership with the R&B quartet, Mass Appeal. Soon joining up with Babyface’s production team, Marquis further refined his music and engineering skills, working with future Finding My Way producer, Jeremy “Cochise” Ball, Thank You producer, Angelo Ray, as well as the legendary Gerald Levert and the Rude Boys. In 2009, Marquis independently released the FMW2.5 mixtape. While Marquis debut and mixtape told of his broken engagement, 2011’s Authentic was more introspective. Moody blues and torch ballad rich, Authentic was a raw, transparent portrait of a man struggling with hard decisions at life’s crossroads. Singing about broken families, lost love, and the roughness of the industry climb prompted Marquis to take a hiatus to make peace with family, study, and re-discover his spirituality and church. Largely written and recorded in five days with sole producer Angelo Ray, the more up-tempo Thank You is a love letter to everyone who stuck by and loved Marquis through his turmoil and evolution into manhood.