Urban music's most anticipated and intriguing new artist, Novel, is offering a glimpse into his storied debut 'The Audiobiography', due out on March 24th, 2009. Last Tuesday, November 25th, he digitally released his EP I Am...(Future Black President). With I Am... - 5 full-length songs available digitally everywhere including iTunes, Amazon.com, etc. - Novel introduces his unique rapped/sung poetics to the world.

Watch I Am video:

Novel on amazon.com

Novel amazon.co.uk

The titular buzz single featuring Talib Kweli, Ben Folds, and Spree Wilson is rife with Novel's heartfelt lyrics: "I'm the sun, I'm light/I'm much more than the bling or the shine off your ice/ I'm as free as a spirit, I'm as fly as a bird/ I'm whatever I wanna be as long as I am heard" and "I'm a product of the ghetto, my father's boy/ a brother to my sister, my mother's pride and joy." Look for the accompanying video to "I Am" on YouTube and splayed elsewhere on the internet.

Also on the EP is "Wild West," which displays Novel's standout singing and rapping side-by-side. Though uncannily gifted, Novel is no duplicitous double-talker. His inspiring lyrics are no good-news gimmick.

In fact, he's started the website FutureBlackPresident.com to echo the uplift. The site is a portal for himself and visitors to offer words of encouragement for this generation and beyond.

While Novel may be new to listeners, his words and work aren't. He's long been penning and producing for other artists, including Alicia Keys, Kelis, India.Arie, and Joss Stone. The I Am... EP, however, is the world's first taste of his own voice. Amazingly, Novel's efforts don't stop with words on a page: Novel writes, produces and arranges. The aforementioned Audiobiography is entirely his, save a few collaborations with Dallas Austin, producer No I.D., and Krucial Keys. And speaking of the Keys team, Novel is fresh off a domestic tour with Alicia. He's now performing at college campuses nationwide, in preparation for his New York showcase come January of 2009.

Novel is a fresh new page, the next chapter in music's ongoing epic.

Novel MySpace
Novel Official Website

"Unstoppable" - Alicia Keys
"An amazing talent" - Leona Lewis
"The potential to be greater than what we have in the business" - Talib Kweli
"Lyrical genius" - Joell Ortiz
"The most unbelievably talented artist, writer and producer of our time" - Dallas Austin

Like the glowing blurbs slathered on the cover of a New York Times best-seller, advance praise for Rowdy/Capitol debut artist NOVEL is rolling in from collaborators and peers.

To ride the groundswell, rapper/singer/songwriter/producer Novel is hitting the road months ahead of the February 2009 release of his first album, THE AUDIOBIOGRAPHY... His intent? To prove what the insiders already know - that he is destined to be one of the major names of this or any year.

Watch Novel video - he talks about the upcoming album:

THE AUDIOBIOGRAPHY... was written, performed and produced entirely by Novel. Collaborations come from Dallas Austin, hit producer No I.D., Robin Thicke, DJ Toomp and Tony Reyes.

Novel's first digital single "I Am," featuring Ben Folds, Talib Kweli and Spree Wilson, releases on October 7, 2008; an album sampler follows soon thereafter. Also expect video footage from the tour on Novel's web pages.

NOVEL, born Alonzo Stevenson, boasts a bloodline that can only be termed stellar: he is grandson of the immortal soul singer/Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Solomon Burke, and son of the Motown songwriter, producer and A&R executive Mickey Stevenson. But these legends become mere back story figures in the tale of a self-made man and talent. Born in Los Angeles, Novel and his mother crisscrossed the country. He cites his time in Philadelphia as a turning point; there, the music of Donny Hathaway and Nina Simone among others spurred his songwriting.

During one sojourn across the States, a call to an industry ally - now Novel's manager - led to a chance meeting with impresario Dallas Austin, who mentored Novel as an all-around talent. Under Dallas' tutelage, the singer/rapper would add lofty production and songwriting credits to his resume: India.Arie, Alicia Keys, Kelis, Joss Stone.

Skip to the present and Novel's sung/rapped lyrics, at once deeply personal and satisfyingly literate, now sit atop his own arrangements and production. Novel is on the cusp of a major breakthrough, having engrossed today's musical luminaries and innovators. Fans likewise won't be able to put down THE AUDIOBIOGRAPHY...

Alicia Keys / Novel September 2008 Tour Dates:

(Dates and information subject to change.)

9/12 - Foxwoods Casino - Mashantucket, CT
9/13 - Horseshoe Casino - Hammond, IN
9/14 - Proctor & Gamble Hall - Cincinnati, OH
9/17 - Wells Fargo Theatre - Denver, CO
9/18 - Abravenel Hall - Salt Lake City, UT
9/20 - WAMU Theater - Seattle, WA
9/21 & 22 - Orpheaum - Vancouver, BC, CAN
9/26 - Santa Barbara Bowl - Santa Barbara, CA
9/27 - Dodge Theatre - Phoenix, AZ
9/28 - Anselmo Valencia Ampitheater - Tuscon, AZ

Get the first read on Novel here:

Novel Official Website
MySpace