John Splithoff / Jamie Drake

Building off a series of hit singles that have racked up more than 100 million streams, cracked the top ten on adult contemporary radio, and earned him festival slots everywhere from Bonnaroo to Lollapalooza, John Splithoff's new album, All In, is bold and self-assured, mixing intoxicating R&B swagger with soulful introspection and dazzling harmonic sophistication.

“This album has been a long time coming,” Splithoff says. “I guess you could call it a slow burn.” Recorded in both New York and Los Angeles, Splithoff’s invigorating debut album has indeed been brewing for quite some time now, and its release this year marks the culmination of nearly a decade of highs and lows, victories and defeats, breakthroughs and setbacks.

Splithoff writes to make sense of himself and his world, and though the record was completed before the arrival of COVID-19, it feels particularly fitting for the times, grappling with loneliness and isolation in the face of longing and desire. The songs are subtle in their personal reckonings, often masking deep, profound revelations with playful, effervescent arrangements; and Splithoff’s performances are similarly complex, exuding both a carefree independence and a burning need for connection all at once. It’s a conflicted album for a conflicted moment, a rich, mesmerizing collection that hints at everything from Marvin Gaye to John Mayer as it transforms doubt into determination and self-reflection into celebration. Sometimes, it seems, a slow burn yields the brightest fire.

One of Los Angeles’ best-kept musical songwriting secrets for over a decade—collaborating with the likes of Sondre Lerche, Jim James, Moby, Sarah and Sean Watkins (Nickel Creek), and Mikael Jorgensen (Wilco)—Jamie Drake has all the while been carefully honing her own craft and preparing to take center stage.