There’s reverence here, but also risk. That balance—tradition in one hand, curiosity in the other—is what makes McDole so compelling

Artwork Records

Tyreek McDole – Vocals; Dylan Band – Tenor & Soprano Saxophones / Caelan Cardello – Piano & Rhodes; – Rodney Whitaker – Bass; Justin Faulkner – Drums; GUESTS: Kenny Barron – Piano ( Track 5); Sullivan Fortner – Hammond B3 Organ & Rhodes (Tracks 6 & 9); Logan Butler – Guitar (Tracks 1, 3, 6 & 11); Emmanuel Michael -Guitar (Track 7); Michael Cruse – Trumpet (Tracks 2 & 9); Tomoki Sanders – Tenor Sax & Percussion (Track 3); Jerome Gillespie II – Drums (Track 1); Weedie Braimah – percussion (Track 8)

At just 25, Tyreek McDole already sounds like he’s been singing jazz for decades. His voice—a rich, full baritone—carries the weight of the tradition and the spark of something new. On his debut OPEN UP YOUR SENSES McDole doesn’t echo the singers who came before—he draws from them, sure, but what you hear is a voice that’s fully formed, confident, and all his own.

A Haitian-American based in New York, Tyreek McDole turned heads in 2023 when he became one of only two men ever to win the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. That alone would be a big enough headline—but OPEN UP YOUR SENSES makes it clear he’s just getting started. McDole delivers not just a promising debut, but a startlingly good one. From the first track, his voice stops you in your tracks—warm, commanding, and so naturally musical.

This isn’t one of those cautious debuts packed with safe ballads or standards on cruise control. McDole reaches deeper. On Leon Thomas and Pharoah Sanders ’’The Creator Has a Master Plan,’ his vocals tap into the song’s raw spirituality—preaching, pleading for you to listen. Tomoki Sanders—Pharoah’s son—lets loose a beautiful wail of a tenor solo, not just echoing the original but adding his own urgency to it.

McDole’s take on Monk’s ‘Ugly Beauty’ is quieter, more reflective. His phrasing brings to mind another great baritone—Johnny Hartman. And with Kenny Barron on piano, it turns into something even more intimate—a quiet, beautiful conversation between two artists in deep musical dialogue.

Rather than playing it safe, McDole seems intent on showing what he can do. There are slow ballads, mid-tempo grooves, different approaches to phrasing—on Nicholas Payton’s ‘The Backward Step,’ he’s phrasing like Kurt Elling. He scats, he swings, and on ‘Every Day I Have the Blues,’ he digs in hard, showing how much heat he can generate. ‘Wongolo Wale,’ a traditional Haitian chant accompanied only by Weedie Braimah’s percussion, is raw and rhythmic, and McDole leans all the way into it. And ‘The Umbrella Man’ is just pure fun—bebop-inflected and playful, with McDole’s agile voice making easy work of the bouncy, nonsense lyrics.

McDole’s got a strong group behind him. Pianist Caelan Cardello, saxophonist Dylan Band, bassist Rodney Whitaker, and drummer Justin Faulkner are with him every step of the way. Some impressive guests help out too: Sullivan Fortner adds color on both Hammond B3 and

Rhodes, and guitarists Logan Butler and Emmanuel Michael bring terrific energy and texture. Trumpeter Michael Cruse contributes with warm tone and lyrical phrasing—just right for the moment.

McDole isn’t just singing these songs—he wants you to feel them. OPEN UP YOUR SENSES doesn’t play like a cautious debut; it plays like someone who knows who he is and what he wants to say. There’s reverence here, but also risk. That balance—tradition in one hand, curiosity in the other—is what makes McDole so compelling. He’s not just one to watch. He’s already worth hearing.