Anderson Paak & The Free Nationals

Singer, rapper, and producer Anderson Paak was an underground LA musician until Dr. Dre unexpectedly tapped him to collaborate on his final studio album, Compton. Paak — who was relatively unknown at the time of the record’s summer 2015 release — appears in this final chapter of Dr. Dre’s discography a total of six times, which piqued the music industry’s interest in the multi-talented young artist. Since Compton, Paak has performed at the Oakland Music Festival and released his latest album, Malibu. Malibu’s sonic palette is soulful and earthy, with plenty of ear-pleasing soul samples that call to mind the vintage feel of D’Angelo’s Black Messiah or even the eclectic production on Kendrick Lamar’s groundbreaking To Pimp a Butterfly. Throughout the record, Paak rhymes with unexpected cadences, switching up tempos and bending his raspy voice in ways that sometimes evoke a brass instrument. He has a free show at 1015 Folsom on January 21.