Poetic, passionate and prolific: separately and collectively, those words describe the musicianship and the marketing strategy of Raheem DeVaughn. A renaissance-level soul provider with a velvety tenor, lyrical skills and a classically-conveyed approach, the performer has amassed an impressive resume in his first ten years as a pro, including three Grammy nominations, BET & BET J Awards and a reputation for songs that adore, rather than objectify, the opposite sex (“Customer,” “Woman,” “You,” etc.).

Becoming the casualty of a major-label collapse would be enough to slow the momentum of practically anyone, but since hustling has always been a part Mr. DeVaughn’s agenda, he continues to bring the expected focus and finesse to his latest solo effort, A Place Called Loveland.

In the three years since his last Grammy-nominated project, 2010’s The Love & War MasterPeace, the social activism that dominated its contents….(please click here for the rest of the CD review at soultracks.com)