Biography
New Jersey duo the Jack Moves surfaced in the early 2010s with a distinctive strain of retro R&B shaped by their joint passion for vintage soul, funk, and hip-hop. Their first release was a gritty reinterpretation of the Ledgends' obscure track "A Fool for You," followed in 2015 by the full-length The Jack Moves on Wax Poetics after issuing one more single. The pair later joined Everloving Records, delivering Free Money in 2018 and Cruiserweight in 2022, each time sharpening their focus on classic soul balladry while exploring richer disco territory.
Falsetto-equipped singer/guitarist Zee Desmondes and drummer Teddy Powell first met while skateboarding in Manhattan's Lower East Side. United by admiration for R&B figures such as Curtis Mayfield, the Delfonics, and Bobby Caldwell, along with hard-edged '90s hip-hop, they formed the Jack Moves and settled in Newark. In 2010 they issued their dusty take on the Ledgends' "A Fool for You," then two years later released the twilight ballad "Kiss in the Dark" as a 7" single backed by that same track on their own Fulltime imprint, a name nodding to Ice Cube's "Jackin' for Beats." Several years afterward they linked with the Wax Poetics label arm for another 7", "Doublin' Down," an elegantly polished and poignant ballad that paved the way for their self-produced, self-titled debut album in October 2015.
After touring and accumulating fresh material, the duo signed with Everloving Records. In close collaboration with co-founder J.P. Plunier they assembled the brighter full-length Free Money, spotlighted by the lively single "Nasty." Extensive road work followed, and in 2020 they cut the socially conscious "Horror Games," donating proceeds to the ACLU and steering their sound toward Parliament-Funkadelic. Desmondes and Powell returned to Everloving in 2022 for their self-produced third album Cruiserweight, with arranger Paul Kyser lending assistance.
Falsetto-equipped singer/guitarist Zee Desmondes and drummer Teddy Powell first met while skateboarding in Manhattan's Lower East Side. United by admiration for R&B figures such as Curtis Mayfield, the Delfonics, and Bobby Caldwell, along with hard-edged '90s hip-hop, they formed the Jack Moves and settled in Newark. In 2010 they issued their dusty take on the Ledgends' "A Fool for You," then two years later released the twilight ballad "Kiss in the Dark" as a 7" single backed by that same track on their own Fulltime imprint, a name nodding to Ice Cube's "Jackin' for Beats." Several years afterward they linked with the Wax Poetics label arm for another 7", "Doublin' Down," an elegantly polished and poignant ballad that paved the way for their self-produced, self-titled debut album in October 2015.
After touring and accumulating fresh material, the duo signed with Everloving Records. In close collaboration with co-founder J.P. Plunier they assembled the brighter full-length Free Money, spotlighted by the lively single "Nasty." Extensive road work followed, and in 2020 they cut the socially conscious "Horror Games," donating proceeds to the ACLU and steering their sound toward Parliament-Funkadelic. Desmondes and Powell returned to Everloving in 2022 for their self-produced third album Cruiserweight, with arranger Paul Kyser lending assistance.
Albums
Singles
