Multiple Grammy-nominated guitarist and producer Ari Teitel has his first solo album in five years, I Got My Thing, on the horizon, set to release on Nov. 10. The felicitously titled project sees the New Orleans-based musician take inspiration from his departure from Cha Wa along with more abstract and existential material he unearthed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Over the past six years, after relocating to New Orleans from Detroit, Teitel spent most of his time as a session player and side man working with artists like Iggy Pop, PJ Morton, and The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra and tapping into various side projects of bands like Dumpstaphunk and Lettuce. But following the lockdowns and cancelations of all prospective gigs, Teitel was taken on an emotional rollercoaster ride as he realized because of his focus on other people’s projects, he’s yet to share his own story and vision truly.

Those sessions were not time wasted as Teitel has amassed a pack of incredible friends and collaborators who join him on the upcoming project, including Nigel Hall (Lettuce), Jamison Ross (Snarky Puppy) and Paul Randolph (formerly of Jazzanova) on several tracks. The LP also features backing vocalists Tracci Lee and Erica Falls and percussion from the legendary Bill Summers.

With the help of the featured artists, who he describes as “big brothers and sisters,” Teitel shares his story through nine tracks of lush, silky ’70s R&B and soul inclinations mixed with a jazz and gospel background and spiced up with influences from a love of all music ranging from indie hip-hop to neo-soul. The resulting project cruises with ease through genre smiling and nodding to greats like Stevie Wonder, Bobby Womack and D’Angelo as it goes – while remaining, for lack of a better term, very New Orleans.

Today, we premiere the first taste of I Got My Thing “In This Life,” a gospel-lined funk song that explores the difficulties and division the country experienced in recent years.

“‘In This Life’ is a gospel-influenced funk/soul song about how misinformation campaigns and lies told on far-right news sources over the last several years have turned people against each other all around the world,” Teitel shared with Relix. “Personally, reading the news makes me feel pretty negative and sometimes makes me forget to show love and compassion for others. So, the song is a mantra for myself and others to remember that despite all the bullshit going on, it’s important to love our neighbors”

Teitel continued to expand on his process, saying, “Musically, I wanted to incorporate the quirkiness of 70s funk singers like Zigaboo Modeliste (of the Meters), Sly Stone, Johnny Guitar Watson and Dr. John, juxtaposed with a thick, churchy funk groove. I doubled my vocals in a higher octave and brought in my friends Erica Falls and Nigel Hall to sing harmonies. I combined Detroit and New Orleans musicians on this track, and I think you’ll hear the marriage of both cities in the groove.” 

Stream “In This Life” here and pre-save I Got My Thing here.

Listen to “In This Life” below.