There’s a moment somewhere in the middle of When You Know You Know where you stop thinking about Benny G as a promising newcomer and start thinking about him as simply a very good artist. That’s a rare thing for a debut EP, and rarer still when the artist in question is only 20 years old.
The six-song project traces the arc of a relationship from beginning to end — the excitement, the warmth, the slow unravelling — and it does so with a kind of emotional intelligence that belies Benny’s age. Nearly every song was recorded live in single takes, a bold choice that pays off. There’s an intimacy to the whole record, a sense of being in the room, that you might not consciously clock on first listen but which explains why everything feels so immediate and unguarded.
‘An Hour or So’ is the obvious entry point — an easy, unhurried listen that sits somewhere in the territory of early James Bay, all soulful restraint and warm acoustic feeling. The vocal is confident without being showy, which is exactly right for a song about the quiet comfort of being with someone you love. It’s the kind of track that could soundtrack a million different moments in a million different people’s lives, which is precisely what makes it work.
‘Hell of a Woman’ takes things in a slightly different direction — there’s a looser, more organic energy here that brings Paolo Nutini to mind, that same sense of a voice that feels too big and too lived-in for the body it’s coming from. It’s a highlight, and a useful reminder that Benny’s range is broader than a single comparison could capture. Country-soul is the shorthand, but the truth is more interesting than that.
The EP’s greatest strength is its consistency. There are no weak links, no filler, no sense that songs have been padded out to hit a track count. What you get instead is six songs that feel like they belong together, that add up to something greater than their individual parts — which is exactly what a debut EP should do.
The Grand Ole Opry debut is tomorrow. The Ty Myers tour is underway. CMA Fest is coming. Benny G is moving fast, and on the evidence of When You Know You Know, the pace is entirely justified. This feels like the start of something big.
When You Know You Know by Benny G is out now.
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