Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Anderson .Paak’s band, The Free Nationals, will release their debut album this year

It looks like 2017 will be a huge year for the band

Justin Carissimo
New York
Wednesday 11 January 2017 16:48 GMT
Anderson .Paak performs on June 18, 2016 at the Wild Life Festival in Queens, New York.
Anderson .Paak performs on June 18, 2016 at the Wild Life Festival in Queens, New York. (Courtesy of Garrett Clare)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The Free Nationals will be releasing their debut album this year, singer and drummer Anderson .Paak announced on Twitter Tuesday night, following up his highly successful 2016.

Last year, the 30-year-old dropped his fantastic solo album Malibu in early January, earning himself a Grammy nom in the Best Urban Contemporary Album category. He’s also up for the Best New Artist award in the ceremony.

But ever since .Paak collaborated with Dr. Dre on the hip-hop mogul's third studio album, Compton, the lives of each band member have drastically changed.


Guitarist Jose Serrano of Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals performs at the inaugural Panorama Music Festival on July 23, 2016 in New York City. Courtesy of Garrett Clare

 Guitarist Jose Serrano of Anderson .Paak & The Free Nationals performs at the inaugural Panorama Music Festival on July 23, 2016 in New York City. Courtesy of Garrett Clare
 (Courtesy of Garrett Clare)

“Man, I mean its like a chain reaction, Anderson getting all that attention and like its been ridiculous, all the press, the people like went from no one really cared to now everybody gives a, everyone cares now,” guitarist Jose Serrano told A Nation of Billions last March.

“Dre’s a West Coast legend, there’s no denying that so for him to like sign off on Breezy its like, its ridiculous I can’t even put it in words sometimes, its hard to explain. We’re riding the wave you know, the Malibu wave, the Venice wave—it’s all one big thing, we’re doing it, we’re living it.”

So far, it looks like 2017 will be a big year for The Free Nationals. Recently, Bruno Mars surprised fans by announcing that .Paak and the his four-member band would be opening for him on the European leg of the 24k Magic World Tour. Stay tuned for more info on The Free National’s debut LP.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in