Kicking Back with Taj Mahal and Keb’ Mo’, Part 1

Los Angeles, CA (May 21, 2025)—There’s a porch somewhere in Franklin, Tennessee, where I wish I could have sat down and shared a glass of lemonade as a witness, up close, to the abundant camaraderie between the two blues icons Taj Mahal and Keb’ Mo’ while they were shooting the cover of their new album, Room on the Porch, which comes out Friday, May 23. Still, I was lucky enough to speak with the two of them them on an hour-long Zoom, where they made it clear that I would have been most welcome, sitting on the steps or in my own rocking chair.

Prevalent in Southern life, the porch is a metaphor for the world—a perfect world with the kind of smiles like those between the two of them on that cover, which are genuine. Both claim there was nothing contrived about that backdrop; it may have been a photo shoot, but they could have easily sat down in the rocking chairs with an ice-cold drink and conversation.

What would they have talked about?

“Depends on how close the women were,” Taj teases, and they both laugh uproariously.

“Men talk,” Keb’ interjects. (More laughter.)

“’Where you been?’” Taj continues. “‘Where you gonna go? How’s your mama? How’s your daddy? How’s your kids?’ All of it, everything. We’re gonna be right here on the porch when you get here,” he says, an open invitation to all.

“It’s all about being inclusive,” Keb’ adds. “The porch is everywhere. It’s the world.”

“I will not have a house without a porch,” Taj says.

POP AND THE TWEEZERS

There is plenty of laughter amid the thoughtfulness during our discussion. Underneath it all is an undeniable respect and admiration for one another. Taj refers to Keb’ as “Son,” and Keb’ calls Taj “Pop,” which is certainly familial; Keb’ says it’s musical, too.

“My musical mom and dad are Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal,” he explains. “I look at what they did and how they did it and why they did it. I look at the breadth of the work they did, and that gave me the permission to go wider with my own music, to open up and not be afraid to mix things up.”

Asked to describe Taj in one word, Keb’ ponders as he stares at his musical partner and friend. Taj taunts him with, “Good luck!” and, finally, Keb’ says: “Badass!”

As they explore the ways in which they are alike and different, the word “tweezers” seems to be a non sequitur every time it pops out of Taj’s mouth. It soon becomes clear that he’s using it as an analogy for Keb’s attention to detail, a trait Taj seems to lack. “He’s got a long pair of tweezers,” Taj offers with a laugh. It’s a word that will reemerge many times through our conversation, like this exchange:

“I saw the Knoxville Symphony three nights ago and they played some stuff…talk about some tweezers, Taj!” Keb’ comments.

“They got the 20-footers!” Taj replies with a chuckle.

“I got tweezers on myself, Taj,” Keb’ admits and Taj laughs. “Last night, I was working on songs. I decided to go back before my show and look at things. I started pulling my vocals apart, thinking like, ‘Well, I’m doing something wrong.’ I started looking at the relationship between timing and pitch. I was adjusting my timing in some phrases because, I guess, sometimes I’m not as confident as a singer, so I was rushing, trying to get through things, and in so doing, I find out that not just the time got squirrelly, but the pitch got squirrelly too. I’m kind of like a scientist in a sense, so musically, when I’m into a BB King record, I go, ‘Why did they play it like that?’ So I ask myself, ‘Why am I going to do that?’ When I play, I have to have a reason to play something.

“I go in and look for the essence of whatever recording I’m working on,” Keb’ reveals. “With TajMo, I go through it and try to hone it down to the most common denominator.”

Tajmo On The Road

Taj says it’s usually Keb’ suggesting “let’s do one more take,” in the studio because Taj admits that he’s rough around the edges and he always prefers leaving it at two takes. That said, he allows Keb’ to guide the way, although both are listed as co-producers on the project.

Keb’ says they don’t work like traditional producers—it’s not “I like that, I don’t like that, do it again.

“We both do what we do,” Keb’ explains. “On this one, we went in the studio and ground it out and we got it, and when we had it, we had it. That’s what we do; we get it. One without the other doesn’t work.”

“When I’m working on my own project, it’s all on me,” Taj says. “When he’s working on his own project, it’s all on him. But when we’re working together, I’ll defer to him. With each record, my ears grow and my respect for what Keb’ does grows with it. I’m always learning how he sings in a certain kind of way, how he lifts up and approaches the beat—and he has an ear. I listen to the music he makes and there’s a balance. There’s room for everything; there’s a conversation. Oftentimes, I got a conversation going on, but there can be some traffic there. [Laughs] I will definitely defer to him. I have no problem with that, senior or not!”

Still, even with all the musical and personal affinities, they never expected to record another album after they made the Grammy-winning TajMo in 2017. However, Room on the Porch was an opportunity they could not refuse.

COME BACK TOMORROW FOR THE CONCLUSION!