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Jul 01, 2014 By Laura Studarus Photography by Laura Studarus Cody ChesnuTT

Cody ChesnuTT and I may hail from the same city, but I admit I knew very little about the musician when I wandered into his show on Saturday night. (Later I would find out that he’s been covered by The Roots. Makes sense, like attracts like.) I glad I took a chance—as the entire audience was treated to a sweaty-heart-felt R&B performance that was equal parts down-and-dirty song and dance, and big-tent revival.

There’s a lot to like about the ChesnuTT. Despite wearing a helmet that hid his eyes from view, it felt like he was exposing a part of his soul to the audience. From tales of both drugs and Sunday school, songs were peppered with real-life verisimilitude, albeit delivered with a flare. There was no dialing it back. Occasionally he’d dip too far into pageantry. A heartfelt song about fighting and making up with his wife was undercut by the fact he wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. But it seemed like a small blip on an otherwise thoughtful and high-energy show. Why argue with the delivery when the message is pitch perfect?

Check out a gallery of images from the show here.

(www.facebook.com/iamcodychesnutt)

(www.montrealjazzfest.com)