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The neo-soul icon’s first album in more than a decade dabbles in everything from trip-hop to New Orleans rhythm & blues while showing off a hard-won graininess <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n\tTo Whom This May Concern<\/a><\/em> is Jill Scott<\/a>\u2019s first album in more than a dec\u00adade. Listeners who missed Scott\u2019s turn-of-the-century heyday, when she recorded her classic 2000 debut, Who Is Jill Scott?: Words and Sounds Vol. 1,<\/em> have had to settle for her appearance with Erykah Badu on a popular 2020 edition of Verzuz<\/a>,<\/em> replaying Kaytranada\u2019s remix of her 2004 hit \u201cGolden,\u201d and watching the sometimes actor make cameos on sitcoms like Abbott Elementary<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tNow, with her long-awaited sixth \u00adalbum, Scott pushes her adventurous streak to the fore, dabbling in everything from trip-hop to New Orleans rhythm & blues. On \u201cNorf Side,\u201d she uses a DJ Premier beat to capably spit alongside fellow Philadelphian \u00adTierra Whack. \u201cThey stay chatting about my body on IG,\u201d raps Scott, perhaps referencing a viral incident where an NFL player obnoxiously insulted her. Longtime fans who adore her babymaker R&B anthems may be initially disappointed with the musical eclecticism. But To Whom This May Concern<\/em> reveals its treasures with \u00adrepeated listens, even if the experience isn\u2019t as smoothly edifying as her past work.<\/p>\n