Leon & Lewis
Joe's Pub425 Lafayette Street, New York 10003
Leon & Lewis take the Joe’s Pub stage as a two-person performance built around “two voices, one piano.” The billed act pairs poet and MC Joél Leon with singer, songwriter and keyboardist Arthur Lewis. Their music brings spoken word, hip-hop and soul into an acoustic format, giving Leon’s poetic delivery and Lewis’s piano-led singing and songwriting equal weight in the same set. No additional guests, release tie-ins, tribute theme, or other program details are listed for this performance.
Based in NYC, Leon & Lewis are an acoustic hip-hop and soul duo. Joe’s Pub describes their work as a blend of spoken word, hip-hop and soul, while Lewis’s phrase “two voices, one piano” offers the clearest picture of the project’s stripped-back framework. Leon contributes poetry and MC work; Lewis brings vocals, songwriting and keyboards. The available information identifies no collaborators or artists they have performed with, and supplies no critical reviews beyond the venue’s description of their music. What is clear is a duo format that places language, voice and piano at the core of the performance.
The stage is set in a converted library space with a striped bar and photos of legends like Leonard Cohen and Amy Winehouse lining the walls. You'll find yourself seated on velvet couches or at candle-lit tables, close enough to hear every note from the back. The sound, engineered by technicians who've worked with John Legend and The Notorious B.I.G., is consistently ranked among the best in New York. Three shows a day, dinner and drinks served throughout, and a menu ranging from Italian small plates to craft cocktails; it's a place where music and conversation flow together, and where both rising stars and legends have made their U.S. debuts.