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louis york

Biography

Louis York is an American musical duo formed in 2015 by Claude Kelly and Chuck Harmony, two multi-Grammy nominated songwriters and producers who decided to transition from behind-the-scenes work to creating their own artistic vision. Kelly and Harmony first met while collaborating on Chrisette Michele's 2009 album Epiphany, and over the following years, they established themselves as sought-after producers and songwriters for major artists including Rihanna, Bruno Mars, Britney Spears, Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson, Jessie J, Miley Cyrus, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston, and Celine Dion. Wanting to move beyond being songwriters for hire and to better reflect their own artistic perspective, they formed Louis York, naming the band after a combination of their respective hometowns—Kelly from New York City and Harmony from East St. Louis.

Louis York's musical style is deliberately genre-defying, drawing from diverse influences including their backgrounds in church choirs, R&B, jazz, and the Motown sound. They describe their music as "world music" in its multi-genre and international sensibilities. The duo released an EP trilogy titled Masterpiece Theater (Acts I, II, and III) between 2015 and 2017, which earned critical praise from publications including Billboard and the Los Angeles Times for their genre-bending approach. Their 2019 debut album American Griots marked a significant milestone, with lead singles "Don't You Forget" and "How Will I Feel" reaching the top 15 on the US Urban Radio chart. The album's title references West African griots—storytellers and oral historians—with the addition of "American" to modernize and personalize this role, reflecting how Louis York views themselves as contemporary storytellers and performers.

Beyond their own music, Louis York established Weirdo Workshop, a creative studio and label based in Franklin, Tennessee, that serves as a multi-purpose creative hub for producing music, hosting lectures, book clubs, and live performances. The duo has amassed millions of cumulative streams on Spotify, performed sold-out shows domestically and internationally, appeared on major media outlets including the 3rd Hour Today, PBS NewsHour, and CNN, and performed multiple times at the Grand Ole Opry. In 2024, they won the Jazz Category of the American Songwriter Song Contest. Their upcoming sophomore album Songs with Friends is set to feature collaborations with artists including Gramps Morgan, PJ Morton, Jessie J, Lalah Hathaway, Chris Daughtry, and Anthony Hamilton.

Fun Facts

  • The band's name originates from combining the hometowns of its two members: Claude Kelly from New York City and Chuck Harmony from East St. Louis, creating 'Louis York'
  • Their debut single 'Clair Huxtable' (2015) celebrates strong women and references the mother character from the television sitcom The Cosby Show, with a music video showing the duo searching for a woman embodying strength, intelligence, sexiness, and elegance
  • Louis York operates Weirdo Workshop, a creative hub based in Franklin, Tennessee, that functions as a multi-purpose space for music production, lectures, book clubs, and live performances, with releases distributed through Sony's RED Distribution
  • The duo has been recognized as speakers and panelists for prestigious organizations including GRAMMY-U, the National Museum of African American Music, Leadership Music, and Leadership Nashville, and they gave a talk as part of the esteemed TEDx Nashville program

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

  • Church choir tradition - Early musical foundation and influence (Foundational influence on their vocal and harmonic approach) [Childhood]
  • Motown sound and Jazz - Childhood exposure to classic R&B and jazz traditions (Stylistic foundation for their genre-blending approach) [Childhood]

Key Collaborators

  • Claude Kelly - Co-founder, vocalist, and primary lyricist (All Louis York releases) [2015-present]
  • Chuck Harmony - Co-founder, multi-instrumentalist (keyboards, guitars, drums, piano, vocoder) (All Louis York releases) [2015-present]
  • Sir The Baptist - Executive producer partner (The Urban Hymnal (Tennessee State University Aristocrat of Bands)) [2020s]
  • Chrisette Michele - Early collaboration that led to Kelly and Harmony meeting (Epiphany album) [2009]
  • The Shindellas - Signees on Weirdo Workshop label (Weirdo Workshop releases) [2010s-present]

Artists Influenced

  • Tennessee State University Aristocrat of Bands - Featured as artists and producers on Grammy Award-winning album (The Urban Hymnal (Best Roots Gospel Album)) [2020s]

Connection Network

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Collaborators
Influenced
Mentors
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Discography

Albums

Title Release Date Type
Songs with Friends 2024-08-30 Album
American Griots 2019-10-18 Album
The Urban Hymnal 2022-09-23 Album

Top Tracks

  1. Heaven Bound (Heaven Bound)
  2. Alone A Lot (Alone A Lot)
  3. Alone A Lot (Songs with Friends)
  4. I Enjoy You (I Enjoy You)
  5. Don't You Forget (American Griots)
  6. Starlight (Starlight)
  7. Heaven Bound (Songs with Friends)
  8. You Bring The Love (You Bring The Love)
  9. How Will I Feel (American Griots)
  10. Three Little Words (Three Little Words)

Heard on WWOZ

louis york has been played 1 time on WWOZ 90.7 FM, New Orleans' jazz and heritage station.

DateTimeTitleShowSpotify
Nov 27, 202519:31sweet potato pieR&Bw/ Your Cousin Dimitri