Morgan Freeman Teams With Taj Mahal, Keb’ Mo’ and Chineke! Orchestra for Symphonic Blues Experience

Morgan Freeman Teams With Taj Mahal, Keb’ Mo’ and Chineke! Orchestra for Symphonic Blues Experience

Release date: ​august 7, 2026
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Academy Award-winning actor Morgan Freeman is diving deeper into his lifelong love of the blues with the announcement of Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience, a new album arriving August 7 via Decca Records.

The 12-track collection pairs iconic blues recordings with sweeping orchestral arrangements, charting more than a century of the genre’s history — from Blind Willie Johnson’s haunting “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground” to “I Lied to You” from the Sinners soundtrack.

Freeman serves as narrator and producer on the project, which features an all-star cast including Taj Mahal, Keb’ Mo’, Shemekia Copeland and producer Lawrence “Boo” Mitchell. The album also spotlights a number of Mississippi blues musicians, many of whom regularly perform at Freeman’s Ground Zero Blues Club, the venue he helped launch 25 years ago in Clarksdale.

Recorded between Memphis and London, Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience blends sessions captured at Royal Studios with orchestral performances by the Chineke! Orchestra, recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios. Freeman said the project was inspired by the blues’ enduring power and deep cultural roots.

“Rooted in stories carried from West Africa to the American South, the Blues became a testament to the unbroken human spirit, the sound of America’s past and present, and the heartbeat of a culture that refused to be forgotten,” Freeman said.

He added: “This album proves that while the Delta’s fortunes may change, its soul is eternal.”

Leading the album is a new take on Son House’s classic “Death Letter Blues,” featuring Taj Mahal on vocals and guitar. First recorded by House in 1965 after his rediscovery during the blues revival, the song remains one of the defining works of Delta blues.

For Freeman, it was the natural choice to introduce the project.
“I heard the blues for the first time on my grandmother’s porch in the Mississippi Delta, and it has never left me,” he said. “Having Taj Mahal kick off this album with a cover of Son House’s classic ‘Death Letter Blues’ strikes the perfect tone for the introduction of this album. Releasing this on Juneteenth is not just symbolic — it is the truth of where this music comes from and who made it. I hope people listen and remember.”

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​The new version pairs Taj Mahal’s performance with orchestral arrangements conducted by Martin Gellner, expanding the song’s scale while preserving the emotional intensity that made the original a classic.

Chineke! Orchestra Interim Artistic Director Jonathon Heyward said the collaboration honors the blues’ legacy while opening new creative possibilities.

“Symphonic Blues is a celebration of one of the world’s most influential musical traditions and the enduring legacy of the artists who shaped it,” Heyward said. “The blues has always been a profound expression of resilience, humanity and truth, and bringing this music into conversation with a symphony orchestra creates something both deeply respectful of its roots and boldly expansive in its possibilities.”

Heyward added that Chineke!’s identity as a majority Black and ethnically diverse orchestra brought a distinctive perspective to the project.

“It has been a privilege to help bring this vision to life, and I hope listeners hear not only the history within this music, but also its continuing power to inspire, connect and transcend boundaries.”
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Decca Records President Laura Monks described the album as “a culturally important work,” praising the collective of artists and musicians who helped bring Freeman’s vision to life.

Morgan Freeman’s Symphonic Blues Experience Track Listing
Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground – Morgan Freeman ft. Keith Johnson
Crossroads – Super Chikan
Death Letter Blues – Taj Mahal
Dust My Broom – Lady Adrena
The Thrill Is Gone – Alvin Youngblood Hart
Cadillac Assembly Line – Keb’ Mo’
Somebody’s Knockin’ – Anthony Big A Sherrod
Traveling Riverside Blues – Shemekia Copeland
I’ll Take You There – Tierinii Jackson ft. Stax Music Academy Choir
Love Me Or Leave Me – Anthony Big A Sherrod
Someday – Anthony Big A Sherrod
I Lied To You – Keith Johnson


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