What is it like to experience rejection in your career? Even the most successful in their field have experienced it. Gregory Porter is a successful singer songwriter, who began his career in New York as a chef, before he was discovered and got his big break as a musician in his 30s. During the pandemic he returned to cooking, one of his childhood loves, and now presents a new TV show - The Porterhouse with Gregory Porter (hosted from the family kitchen in Bakersfield, California) - where he celebrates food, music, family and giving back. Join us for a Comms from the Shed exclusive where we talk to Gregory about the interconnected nature of all the things he loves most - food, music, acting and presenting. We also discuss the influence of his mother and father on his song writing, the music of his childhood, why New York has been so important to his career, and his special relationship with the U.K.
The Porterhouse with Gregory Porter (hosted from the family kitchen in Bakersfield, California) - is a new show where the two time Grammy winner celebrates food, music, family and giving back.
Gregory Porter's first two albums — Water (2010) and Be Good (2012) — both received Grammy nominations. In 2013, he released his Blue Note debut Liquid Spirit which quickly grew into a global phenomenon, selling more than a million albums and earning him his first Grammy Award with NPR declaring him “America’s Next Great Jazz Singer.” His 2016 follow-up Take Me To The Alley claimed him a second GRAMMY for Best Vocal Jazz Album and firmly established him as his generation’s most soulful jazz singer-songwriter. In 2017, Porter released the heartfelt tribute album Nat King Cole & Me, and in 2020 returned to his original song writing on the uplifting All Rise, both of which received Grammy nominations. He is also the host of the podcast The Hang, a conversation series featuring his famous friends that explores the musical and creative threads that join us all together.
“Music and food, two things in life I truly love, have always been connected,” says Porter. “The kitchen was actually my home before I ever stepped on stage. Food is not just food, it’s tradition, it’s family, it’s roots, and that’s what music is. When I make a beautiful dish, something that makes people feel good and it brightens their face and lightens their mood, this is the way I think about music. Writing songs and creating dishes have always inspired me.”