It’s a truly great day when you enter your college songwriting course only to be greeted by GRAMMY-nominated singer/songwriter Anthony David. The acoustic guitar slaying "Simple Man" visited students at Fisk University, shared a few music composition gems and led them in a live version of his latest single, “Beautiful Problem,” from his new album, The Powerful Now. The course was led by Dr. Paul Kwame and frequent AD collaborator Shannon Sanders, who illustrated the importance of building your song around the melody, while playing a brief but rousing instrumental version of the single on the piano. This solid piece of advice proved true as this song is just as penetrating with or without the lyrical accompaniment.
Acey Duecy’s signature voice leads as the students join in and add to the haunting depth of this song full of melodic contradictions. The conflict between heart and mind is flawlessly conveyed, leaving the listener to wonder if one truly wants to resolve this battle. This moving rendition highlights both the brilliance of Anthony David and the tremendous talent in these young voices. A word of advice: Keep an eye on these students, as they were fresh on David’s heels as they backed him up. This is not an easy task, and we expect to see and hear great things from them.
