Van Hunt is the Curtis Mayfied of our generation. As Curtis did, Van Hunt knows how to write a song. I don’t know why he continues to go unsung, but he is a quadruple threat: singer, songwriter, musician, and producer. There are many people who can sing. There are many people who can play, but rare is the really good songwriter.

Van Hunt has released two very stellar studio albums, Van Hunt and On The Jungle Floor. There is not one filler song on either of these releases. He was all set to release a third studio album, Popular, when it was shelved by Blue Note. Why, oh why did they do that? It is such a brilliant album.

Last year, he independently released technically his fourth album, What Were You Looking For? The quality of songwriting that Van Hunt continues to conjure is mindboggling. Songwriting is such a dying craft. It is important that we hold on to it, and as a result we should celebrate Van Hunt.

Van Hunt is currently on tour. To see tour dates, visit http://www.vanhunt.com/news. If he comes to a city near you, support this soul soldier who is holding it down like no other. He is truly a national treasure and no one seems to know this. Hopefully, by the end of this mix, YOU will, and as a result I hope you will purchase his albums and go see him live so that Van Hunt can continue to do what he does better than most: make music.

Van Hunt Interview by GrownFolksMusic

Playlist:

• No Sense Of Crime – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Out Of The Sky – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• Highlights – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• Hot Stage Lights – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Suspicion (She Knows Me Too Well) – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Missing You – Joi – Star Kitty’s Revenge – [Universal Records]
• Let’s Work (Dance Remix) – Prince – Ultimate – [Warner Bros]
• Let’s Work – Prince – Controversy – [Warner Bros]
• Being A Girl – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Being a Girl – prince ALI – Corner Ensemble – [Hieroglyphics Imperium]
• Nasty Girl – Vanity 6 – Vanity 6 – [Warner Bros]
• Hole In My Heart – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Sexy (I’m not known for dancin’) – Van Hunt – Use In Case of Emergency (rare items from the vault) – [vanhunt.com]
• Her December – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• June – Van Hunt – June – [vanhunt.com]
• The Lowest 1 of my desires – Van Hunt – Popular [unreleased]
• Ur Personal Army – Van Hunt – Popular [unreleased]
• Man of The Year (original version) – Van Hunt – Use In Case of Emergency (rare items from the vault) – [vanhunt.com]
• Hidden Charm (original version) – Van Hunt – Use In Case of Emergency (rare items from the vault) – [vanhunt.com]
• Dust – Van Hunt – Van Hunt Connect Set EP – [Capitol Records]
• Dust – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• Ride, Ride, Ride – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Hidden Charms – Van Hunt – Van Hunt Acoustic EP – [Capitol Records]
• Ride, Ride, Ride – Van Hunt – Van Hunt Connect Set EP – [Capitol Records]
• N.e.thing2getura10chin – Van Hunt – Use In Case of Emergency (rare items from the vault) – [vanhunt.com]
• Burnin’ – Rahsaan Patterson – After Hours – [Artistry Music Group]
• Hello, Goodbye – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• Tingle – Van Hunt – Use In Case of Emergency (rare items from the vault) – [vanhunt.com]
• Character (acoustic) – Van Hunt – The Popular Machine EP – [Blue Note]
• N The Southern Shade – Van Hunt – Popular [unreleased]
• Hopeless – Dionne Farris – Love Jones – [BMG]
• Deliciously Down – Cree Summer – Street Faërie – [Columbia]
• ATTENTION! – Van Hunt – Use In Case of Emergency (rare items from the vault) – [vanhunt.com]
• Hold My Hand – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• Turn My TV on – Van Hunt – Popular [unreleased]
• Seconds Of Pleasure – Van Hunt – Van Hunt – [Capitol Records]
• Seconds of Pleasure – Van Hunt – Van Hunt Acoustic EP – [Capitol Records]
• Mean Sleep – Cree Summer – Street Faërie – [Columbia]
• Mean Sleep (featuring Nikka Costa) – Van Hunt – On The Jungle Floor – [Capitol Records]
• Half The Fun – Count Bass D – Act Your Waist Size – [Fat Beats]