Your act seems uniquely suited to Las Vegas, bringing both the standards of its lounge past and the hip-hop of its nightclub present. Have you thought about doing a long-term engagement here at all?
We’ve talked about it. I like Vegas a lot, and I do think we’re suited for each other. I know people that live there, I’ve been to church there, and I’ve had a really good time in Vegas. So it could be something for the future. I would never rule it out.
Having sung the standards on your latest two albums, is the songwriter in you ready to bust out again?
Definitely. I have a bunch of recorded music. If anything I’m just kinda timing all of this stuff out, because I have more music than I have time. I’m always recording new stuff and writing, to express different sides of me. It’s singing stuff mostly. There’s some rap stuff, too, but primarily singing, a mixture of different genres, like reggae and soulful stuff.
Do you see yourself doing another hip-hop album at some point?
Yeah, I do. Honestly, nobody really filled my slot when I stopped putting out hip-hop records, so I still see a lane. I don’t expect to come out and sell millions of records necessarily, but I feel like I still have a voice, and I still love hip-hop, and I always will. As long as I can make some tight records, I think there’s an audience that will be into them because they’ve rolled with me through everything else I’ve done in my career. I honestly get a lot of requests to make music, to mix it up and inject a little more positivity into the game.
November 16, 8 p.m., $40-$60. House of Blues, 632-7600.