''Djesse Vol. 4'' is the fifth studio album by English musician

Jacob Collier Jacob Collier (born 2 August 1994) is a British singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and educator. His music incorporates a combination of jazz and elements from other musical genres, and often features extensive use of reharmo ...

, released on 29 February 2024. The album is the fourth and final instalment in the ''Djesse'' series, which began in 2018 with '' Djesse Vol. 1''. The album received mixed reviews, with some praising the musical proficiency and others claiming that the project was excessive and overwhelming. At the

67th Annual Grammy Awards The 67th Annual Grammy Awards honored the best recordings, compositions, and artists from September 16, 2023, to August 30, 2024, as chosen by the members of the Recording Academy, on February 2, 2025. In its 22nd year at Crypto.com Arena in L ...

, the album received a nomination for Album of the Year. Two of the tracks were also recognized: "Bridge over Troubled Water" won for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella, and "A Rock Somewhere" was nominated for Best Global Music Performance.

Background

first become known for publishing arrangements of popular songs on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

in which he performed multiple instruments and layered vocal harmonies. American record producer

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

contacted Collier after the release of his cover of

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

's "

Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing "Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing" is a song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released as the third single from his sixteenth studio album, ''Innervisions'' (1973). It spent fifteen weeks on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, debuting at n ...

" (1974) in 2013, eventually assuming management of his career. Collier recorded and produced his debut album ''

In My Room "In My Room" is a song written by Brian Wilson and Gary Usher for the American rock band the Beach Boys. It was released on their 1963 album '' Surfer Girl''. It was also released as the B-side of the " Be True to Your School" single. The singl ...

'' (2016) independently. The album was met with a positive reception, including two

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

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's Ari Shapiro describes ''Djesse Vol. 4'' as the "culmination" of the four-album series starting with '' Djesse Vol. 1'' (2018).

Promotion and singles

"Never Gonna Be Alone," featuring Lizzy McAlpine and John Mayer, was released on 10 June 2022; it was nominated for the

Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as t ...

. The song was later revealed to be the first single off Collier's upcoming project ''Djesse Vol. 4''. "Wellll", the second single, was released on 14 July 2023, alongside a music video featuring Collier on a custom five-string electric guitar. "Little Blue," featuring

Brandi Carlile Brandi Marie Carlile (born June 1, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and producer. Her music spans different genres, including folk rock, alternative country, Americana, and classic rock. Throughout her career, she has received eleven Gramm ...

, the third single, was released on 21 September 2023, with its music video. The fourth single, "Wherever I Go", features Lawrence and Michael McDonald and was released on 27 October 2023. The fifth single, "Witness Me", was released on 21 November 2023 and features

Shawn Mendes Shawn Peter Raul Mendes ( , ; born August 8, 1998) is a Canadian singer. He gained a following in 2013 when he posted song covers on the video-sharing platform Vine (software), Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manage ...

Stormzy Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr. (born 26 July 1993), known professionally as Stormzy, is an English-Ghanaian rapper, singer, and songwriter. In 2014, he gained attention on the UK underground music scene through his ''Wicked Skengman'' ...

, and

Kirk Franklin Kirk Dewayne Franklin (born January 26, 1970) is an American Gospel music, gospel musician. One of the List of best-selling gospel music artists, best-selling gospel music artists, his accolades include 20 Grammy Awards. ''Variety (magazine), Var ...

. Two new singles were released in early 2024. The sixth single, "", featuring Camilo, was released on 19 January 2024. The final single, "Bridge over Troubled Water", featuring vocals by

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He began his musical career working behind the scenes for other artists, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Every ...

and

Tori Kelly Victoria Loren Kelly (born December 14, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter. She first gained recognition on YouTube before making it through to Hollywood week on the ninth season of ''American Idol'' in 2010 and eventually releasing her debu ...

, was released on 22 February. It is a cover of the song of the same name by

Simon & Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...

, and features uncredited vocals from

Yebba Abigail Elizabeth Smith, (born January 16, 1995) known professionally as Yebba, is an American singer and songwriter from West Memphis, Arkansas. She first became known for her YouTube channel and then for her backing vocal performance on Chanc ...

Tour

Collier has announced a North American tour to promote the album, which played from April to June 2024.

Reception

Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic (abbreviated as Sputnik) is a music website that publishes music reviews and news entries. The site hosts both professional and amateur content, covering metal, punk, indie, rock, hip-hop, pop and other styles. Its reviews are us ...

'' reported that ''Djesse Vol. 4'' had received unusually divided reactions from audiences; while some listeners applauded the musical proficiency displayed on the work, others shared feelings of "visceral disgust". A ''

Times Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time specificat ...

'' reviewer commented on the talent Collier shows by combining several genres on the record, but felt that it "begins to feel like showing off" and loses its "charm" through excess. ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'' Ammar Kalia also noted the wide range of genres represented on the album. Though he felt the dense production could overwhelm many listeners, Kalia found the record "invigorating and irrepressible". The album received a nomination for Album of the Year at the

. Two tracks received nominations as well: "A Rock Somewhere" for Best Global Music Performance and "Bridge over Troubled Water" for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella - he won the latter.

Track listing

All tracks are written by

, except where noted. All tracks are produced by Jacob Collier, except "Wherever I Go" (produced by Collier and The Diner).

Notes

* "100,000 Voices" and "Box of Stars Pt. 1" contains a sample of "Ovdoviala Lissitchkata" by Bulgarian State Television Female Vocal Choir. * "Wellll" is stylized in

all caps In typography, text or font in all caps (short for "all capitals") contains capital letters without any lowercase letters. For example: All-caps text can be seen in legal documents, advertisements, newspaper headlines, and the titles on book co ...

. * "Never Gonna Be Alone" contains a sample of "In Too Deep (Acoustic Version)" by Jacob Collier. * "Bridge over Troubled Water" is a cover of the song of the same title by

. A previous recording of the song by

is included on the track, but she requested to remain uncredited.

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes and TIDAL. *

– vocals, instruments, arrangements,

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

, production, and mixing

Additional musicians

* Moulay Abdekrim Alaalaoui – background vocals and krakebs * Lydia Acquah – handclaps , gang vocals * The Aeolians of Oakwood University 2018 – choir ** Alaysia Bookal, Aleigha Durand, Allayna O'Quinn, Andre Smith, Asriel Davis, Asya Bookal, Briana Marshall, Carl Reed, Celine Sylvester, Chad Lupoe, Charles Wallington, Chesroleeysia Bobb, Cleavon Davis, Cole Henry, Dominique DeAbreu, Haley Flemons, Hector Jordan, Holland Sampson, JoPaul Scavella, Jonathan Mills, Jourdan Bardo, Kashea Whyte, Keviez Wilson, Kobe Brown, Kristin Hall, Leonard Brown, Lincoln Liburd, Louis Cleare, Maia Foster, Malia Ewen, Malik George, Malik Mchayle, Marc Simons, Marissa Wright, Matthew Cordner, Mykel Robinson-Collins, Naomi Parchment, Natrickie Louissant, Patricia Williams, Roddley Point Du Jour, Samara Bowden, Samella Carryl, Terell Francis-Clarke, Zarren Bennett * Maia Agnes – Filipino/Tagalog spoken word * Arch Echo – guitar, keyboards, bass, and drums ** Adam Bentley, Adam Rafowitz, Joe Calderone, Joey Izzo, Richie Martinez *

Aespa Aespa ( ; , stylized in Letter case#All lowercase, all lowercase or as æspa) is a South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment. The group consists of four members: Karina (South Korean singer), Karina, Giselle (singer), Giselle, Winter ...

(Winter, Karina, Giselle, and Ning Ning) – vocals * Audience Choirs from The Djesse World Tour 2022 – choir ** Sydney, Paris, Vienna, Cologne, Amsterdam, Munich, Utrecht, Auckland, Santiago de Compostela, Barcelona, Madrid, Stockholm, Bristol, Berlin, Oslo, Luxembourg * Regina Averion – gang vocals * Awich – spoken word * Prerana Balcham – Tamil spoken word * Felipe Baldauf – handclaps , gang vocals * Erin Bentlage – gang vocals * Charlotte Blaudeck – German spoken word * Ben Bloomberg – handclaps , gang vocals * Wahid Boudjeltia – background vocals and krakebs * Abdelhak Bounhar – background vocals and krakebs * Camilo – lead and background vocals, frog guiro, mouth harp, tiple, and whistling *

– vocals * Stian Carstensen – pedal steel * Tereza Catarov – handclaps , gang vocals * Li-Chin Chang () – Traditional Chinese spoken word * Tom Chichester-Clark – handclaps , gang vocals * Jordan Cohen –

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (whi ...

, background vocals * Sophie Collier – background vocals * Suzie Collier – orchestra conductor *

Madison Cunningham Madison Cunningham (born October 14, 1996) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. ''Rolling Stone'' described her music as "a new spin on West Coast folk-rock, with classical tendencies, electric guitars, jazz-school chord changes and a ...

– lead vocals * Mario Daisson – handclaps , gang vocals * Dapul – Filipino/Tagalog spoken word * Pat Davey – handclaps , gang vocals * Dhol Academy –

Dhol Dhol () can refer to any one of a number of similar types of double-headed drum widely used, with regional variations, throughout the Indian subcontinent. Its range of distribution in Indian subcontinent primarily includes northern areas such ...

drumming ensemble ** Harjodh Singh Assi, Jasdeep Singh Bamrah, Taran Singh Bedi * The Diner – additional horn arrangements * Shay Dyer-Harris – handclaps , gang vocals * Emily Elbert – gang vocals * Adam Fell – gang vocals * Jason Max Ferdinand – choir conductor and piano *

– choir direction and additional vocal arrangements * Kirk Franklin Singers – background vocals ** Ariel Campbell, Billy Mitchell, Carla Williams, Connie Johnson, Demarcus Williams, Drea Randle, Eboni Ellerson-Williams, Emerald Campbell, Ja'Quoi Griffin, Josiah Martin, Minon Bolton, Rachel Clifton, Sanesia Tillman, Stephanie Archer, Trent Shelby, Zebulon Ellis * Sara Gazarek – gang vocals * Nathan Greer – Turkish spoken word * Alex Guitierrez – gang vocals * Francesca Haincourt – background vocals and gang vocals * Ondrej Hanák – Czech spoken word * Neda Imamverdi – Farsi spoken word * Ben Jones – electric guitar * Juliette Jouan – French spoken word * JNY – spoken word * Hamid El Kasri – guembri * Katrin – spoken word * Jay Kavanagh – Spanish spoken word *

– lead vocals * Jonny Koh – guitar * Kont – spoken word * Kpoobari Saana Kpoobari-Ereba – Gokana spoken word * John Lampley – trumpet *

Clyde Lawrence Lawrence is a US-based pop-soul group founded by Clyde and Gracie Lawrence, a sibling duo who grew up in New York City. They have been singing, performing, and writing songs together since early childhood. Today, Lawrence is an eight-piece ban ...

– lead vocals , background vocals * Gracie Lawrence – lead and background vocals * Jim Le Mesurier – percussion * Yuri Lee – Korean spoken word *

– lead vocals * Ryan Lerman – gang vocals * Jang Li () – Taiwanese spoken word * Lindsey Lomis – lead and background vocals * David Longstreth – gang vocals * Stevie Mackey – gang vocals * Francesco Marcheselli – Italian spoken word * Feu Marinho – handclaps , gang vocals *

Chris Martin Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. He is best known as the vocalist, pianist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Born in Exeter, Martin went to University Colleg ...

– lead and background vocals * Kanyi Mavi – spoken word *

John Mayer John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but he left for Atlanta in 1997 with fellow guitarist Clay Cook, with whom he formed the short-liv ...

– electric guitar solo *

Lizzy McAlpine Elizabeth Catherine McAlpine (born September 21, 1999) is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. In 2020, she released her debut studio album, '' Give Me a Minute'', to critical acclaim. Her second album, ''Five Seconds Flat'' (2022) ...

– lead and background vocals * Michael McDonald – lead and background vocals * Magnus Mehta – percussion *

– lead and background vocals *

Metropole Orkest The Metropole Orkest () is a jazz and pop orchestra based in the Netherlands, and is the largest full-time ensemble of its kind in the world. A hybrid orchestra, it combines jazz, big band and classical symphony orchestra styles. Comprising bet ...

– orchestra ** David Peijnenborgh, Denis Koenders, Ewa Zbyszynska, Jasper van Rosmalen, Kilian van Rooij, Leonid Nikishin, Merel Jonker, Pauline Terlouw, Ruben Margarita, Sarah Koch, Thomas Gould, Vera Laporeva, Willem Kok, Xaquín Carro Cribeiro – violin ** Alex Welch, Isabella Petersen, Julia Jowett, Mieke Honingh, Wouter Huizinga – viola ** Annie Tangberg, Geneviève Verhage, Jascha Albracht, Joel Siepmann, Susanne Rosmolen – cello ** Arend Liefkes, Erik Winkelmann –

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

** Janine Abbas, Mariël van den Bos –

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

piccolo The piccolo ( ; ) is a smaller version of the western concert flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" or piccolo flute, the modern piccolo has the same type of fingerings as the ...

** Maxime le Minter –

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double-reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, ...

** David Kweksilber –

clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell. Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...

** Leo Janssen, Marc Scholten, Paul van der Feen, Sjoerd Dijkhuizen – saxophone ** Diechje Minne, Pieter Hunfeld –

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...

** Nico Schepers, Ray Bruinsma, Rik Mol – trumpet ** Jan Bastiani, Maarten Combrink, Marc Godfroid – trombone ** David Kutz, Ries Schellekens – tuba ** Joke Schonewille –

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orchestras or ...

* Martina Mihulkova – handclaps , gang vocals * Mopiano – spoken word * Abderrazak Moustaqim – background vocals and krakebs * Robin Mullarkey – electric bass * Naezy – spoken word * Barbara Obremska – Polish spoken word * Adam Osmianski – handclaps , gang vocals * Ivan Ormond – percussion * Chris Ott – trombone * David Pattman – percussion * Akrivi Pavlidou – Greek spoken word * Robin Pecknold – gang vocals * Michael Peha – gang vocals * DáSa Pokorny – Slovak spoken word * Na La Takadia Praminta Putri – Indonesian spoken word * Emma Quaedvlieg – Serbian spoken word *

Jessie Reyez Jessica Reyez (born June 12, 1991) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Her 2016 single, "Figures", peaked at number 58 on the Canadian Hot 100 and received triple platinum certification by Music Canada (MC) and platinum by the Recording Industry A ...

– spoken word , Spanish spoken word * Jakub Rokosz – handclaps , gang vocals * Jordan Rose – drums * Daniel Rotem – gang vocals * John Ryan – drums * Patricia S-Thomas – Swahili spoken word *

Oumou Sangaré Oumou Sangaré (; born 25 February 1968) is a Malian Wassoulou singer of Fulani ( Fula) descent. She is often referred to as "The Songbird of Wassoulou". Wassoulou is a historical region south of the Niger River, where the music descends from ...

– background vocals * Barak Schmool – percussion , handclaps , gang vocals * Konstantin Selyansky – Russian spoken word * Seema Seraj – gang vocals *

Anoushka Shankar Anoushka Hemangini Shankar (born 9 June 1981) is a British-American sitar player and musician of Indian descent, as well as occasional writer. She performs across multiple genres and styles—Indian classical, classical and contemporary, acoust ...

–

sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instrument was invented in the 18th century, and arrived at its present form in 19th-century India. Khusrau K ...

* Noah Simon – gang vocals *

Willow Smith Willow Smith (born October 31, 2000), also known mononymously as Willow, is an American singer, actress and dancer. The daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, she has received various accolades, including a Young Artist Award, an NAAC ...

– scream vocals *

Lennon Stella Lennon Ray Louise Stella is a Canadian singer and actress. She portrayed Maddie Conrad on the musical-drama series ''Nashville'' (2012–2018). Before going solo in 2018, Stella performed with her sister as the duo Lennon & Maisy. Stella rele ...

– background vocals *

– lead vocals and spoken word *

Chris Thile Christopher Scott Thile (; born February 20, 1981) is an American mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and radio personality, best known for his work in the progressive acoustic trio Nickel Creek and the acoustic folk and progressive blue ...

–

mandolin A mandolin (, ; literally "small mandola") is a Chordophone, stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally Plucked string instrument, plucked with a plectrum, pick. It most commonly has four Course (music), courses of doubled St ...

* Utako Toyama – Japanese spoken word *

Steve Vai Steven Siro Vai ( ; born June 6, 1960) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and producer. A three-time Grammy Award winner and fifteen-time nominee, Vai started his music career in 1978 at the age of eighteen as a Transcription (music), transc ...

– electric guitar * Valas – spoken word * Sus Vasquez – electric guitar * Varijashree Venugopal – featured vocals , background vocals * Voces8 – choir * Noah Wang – Mandarin spoken word *

Sam Wilkes Sam Wilkes (born July 22, 1991) is an American bassist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music producer. He has collaborated extensively with jazz saxophonist Sam Gendel and toured as a member of jazz-funk band Knower. Wilkes has released s ...

– gang vocals *

Remi Wolf Remi Francis Wolf (born February 2, 1996) is an American singer and songwriter from Palo Alto, California. As a senior in high school, she appeared as a contestant on ''American Idol'' in 2014. After completing her undergraduate music studies in ...

– background vocals *

– vocals * Zakwe – spoken word * Kasia Zielinska – handclaps , gang vocals

Technical

* Ben Bloomberg – additional mixing *

Emily Lazar Emily B. Lazar is an American mastering engineer. She is the founder, president, and chief mastering engineer of The Lodge, an audio mastering facility that has operated in New York City's Greenwich Village since 1997. She won a Grammy Award for ...

– mastering

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2024 albums Jacob Collier albums Sequel albums