Maxwell says Silent Serenade Ensemble will take fans on a 'journey into the evolution of Black music'

Wednesday, July 9, 2025 at 6:00 AM

Maxwell has been entertaining fans as part of his Serenade Tour, but in September, he'll take a little break for a different kind of show. He tells ABC Audio the idea came together following a suggestion from his longtime friend, who said he should do something similar to his praised performance on NPR's Tiny Desk.

“I came up with this name, the Silent Serenade Ensemble,” Maxwell says. “Silent because it's more acoustic. the ensemble, because I have more room to change the instruments and make them things that you would never expect to be together. So I can do arrangements that you've never heard with songs that you already know.”

He shares the tour will see him exercise his creative freedom and break the structure of a typical Maxwell show where fans simply wait to hear their favorite songs.

“This is more of an experience. [It’s] a journey into the evolution of Black music as it pertains to all of the aspects of how Black culture has touched music,” Maxwell says, noting he wants people to “understand the greatness of this incredible tradition of not just soul and R&B, but just music from people who find a way to transmute and alchemize the pain that they go through by creating just works of art that just never end.”

Maxwell says he also wants to “provide opportunities for all cultures to celebrate their own sense of music."

“There's a lot of things that we need to just celebrate about ourselves,” he tells ABC Audio. “This is my opportunity to do that” in a “way that brings people to emotion.”