Hailing from Hamburg, Germany, Amo Jr. delivers a vulnerable single that bares his soul as he reflects on the transformational experience in life that motivates his plea “to show me your emotions.” “Emotions” is the sedimental offspring of the formidable, genre-bending styles of folk, country, and gospel-influenced trailblazers, such as Michael Kiwanuka, Johnny Cash, Tracy Chapman, and Bob Dylan.
Heartfelt in its progression, the inspiring piece that was created in a matter of minutes in the studio is Amo Jr.’s manifesto for healing, forgiveness, and self-acceptance. The baritone vocalist’s serenades with emotionally gripping lyricism on top of an easy-listening production. Amo Jr. wrote, composed and co-produced the single, produced by Franz Schedlbauer, who also worked on the arrangement and guitar programming. Christian Schällert performed piano, while Charlotte Ortmann contributed flute.
The accompanying music video shows the artist record the song in a warm and open interior space while the engineer arranges the track, intercut with Amo Jr. walking the exterior pastures of a scenically breathtaking field. Coupling of the two scenes into one further emphasizes the emotional release that Amo Jr. enjoys as he croons over the retrospective song.
Amo Jr. has gone through many rebirths as a student of music. Originally from Ghana, the singer formerly known as Bursty Bust was exposed to a variety of musical genres that ranged from blues and soul to pop and folk.
A chance education in guitar introduced him to three chords that would become the fundamental groundwork to his early writings. As Amo Jr. explored his love for music, he would secretly write songs until one day his siblings discovered his gift for writing and encouraged him to perform it publicly. The challenge morphed into a lifelong pursuit of Amo Jr.’s that manifested in collaborations with musicians Y’akoto and Sammy Deluxe and a stint in a band.
For years he would perform as a solo artist before going on a five-year hiatus to pursue academic opportunities. He made his metamorphic return to music in 2021, releasing the EP Home, led by the self-aware, liberating single “Wake Up.” “Emotions” releases ahead of Amo Jr.’s debut studio album Good Quality, to be released later in 2022.
“Emotions” is available on Apple Music, Spotify, SoundCloud, and YouTube.
