Paul Josephs is a city-born mystic with the soul of a poet and the instincts of a bandleader. Raised in the heart of New York, he speaks the language of rhythm and streetlight—but he was taught by older voices: wind through tenement cracks, thunder off rooftop water towers, and the river the Lenape called Mahicanituck—the river that flows both ways.
Since the age of sixteen, Paul has been fronting bands with vision and fire. As a singer, emcee, guitarist, and multi-instrumentalist producer, he doesn’t just write songs—he conjures worlds. His lyrics walk that rare line between raw and refined, political and personal, ancient and right now.
His latest release, Strong World, is an analog trip into psychedelic soul, backed by a seven-piece band with horn arrangements that breathe. Under the alias MetroSonics, he delivers Focused Fire—a soulful, hard-driving hip-hop odyssey, soon to be re-released.
Paul’s musical DNA runs deep: late nights at underground Brooklyn dance parties where Rastas spun rare 45s through clouds of herb smoke, and early years sitting in at Harlem jazz sessions with elders of the scene, soaking up the pulse of a disappearing New York.
After early buzz and time at the forefront of NYC’s underground—charting above Cat Power on CMJ and working with legends like Idris Muhammad and Maceo Parker—Paul stepped away from the spotlight for many years. He vanished into the bush of Negril, Jamaica, studied with Rasta elders, grew medicine in the mountains, built his own studio, and reconnected with a deeper path. Time in Australia and Woodstock followed—each place adding something vital.
Now, Paul returns with music that grooves, speaks, and listens all at once. He’s collaborated with artists like Nikki Glaspie, Big Yuki, Chris Rob, Nate Wood, Rich Medina, and Kirk Douglas. But above all, he follows his own current—artist and architect of rhythm, flowing across genres like water: soul, funk, hip-hop, jazz, reggae, blues, folk.
Whether on stage with a full band, or alone with a guitar, piano, or just his voice, Paul carries something timeless. He’s not just performing—he’s channeling.
“ Soulful and smart music, bouncing along on bluesy guitar and a rock/reggae beat, Strong World would be at home in any record collection that stretches from Santana to the Clash to Arcade Fire. Paul Josephs and MetroSonics pack a small world into each tune.”
“Psychedelic blue-eyed soul that rocks.”
“If there’s one thing Paul Josephs and the Metrosonics’ Strong World isn’t, it’s your average background music self released indie album. Several tracks stand out from this fresh and contemporary—yet at the same time still beholden to classic sounds—record. From the smooth, bluesy “Mystics” to the reggae and brass laden “Heal Me,” Josephs makes his way from genre to genre establishing the eclectic nature of his writing and composition. In one of the louder and in your face songs of the record, “Upstream,” Josephs blends a groovy rock feel and guitar solo with big band horns while weaving rap vocals in and out for a unique, catchy track you’ll want to play over and over. An album easily appreciated by both casual listeners and musicians alike, Strong World demands the listener’s attention, curiosity and most of all, enjoyment.”
“Rootical Lyricism”