Mofro is the former name of JJ Grey & Mofro, an American soul/funk/R&B/blues/southern rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed in the 1990s. Growing up in the swamplands of northern Florida, JJ Grey became a realist early on. "You fall in love with a pig," he says, "and then one day your granddad knocks it in the head and bleeds it for butchering. You tend to grow up with a certain amount of realism in your life." JJ Grey and his band MOFRO exude rocking, funky, melodic, front porch realism in every song they play. ...show more

Mofro is the former name of JJ Grey & Mofro, an American soul/funk/R&B/blues/southern rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed in the 1990s. Growing up in the swamplands of northern Florida, JJ Grey became a realist early on. "You fall in love with a pig," he says, "and then one day your granddad knocks it in the head and bleeds it for butchering. You tend to grow up with a certain amount of realism in your life." JJ Grey and his band MOFRO exude rocking, funky, melodic, front porch realism in every song they play.

Grey comes from a long tradition of Southern storytellers, and his songs oftentimes use the loss of his natural surroundings and the marginalization of the Southern culture he grew up in as a metaphor for universal truths. The band delivers his material with brilliant musicianship, resulting in music that is thought provoking, rhythmically dynamic and texturally mesmerizing. JJ Grey & MOFRO's Alligator debut Country Ghetto (produced by Dan Prothero) features 12 original JJ Grey compositions that come right out of the Southern musical and literary tradition. Grey's ear for detail inhabits his songs, whether it's a story passed down to him from his grandmother or the tribulations of a childhood friend.

His voice delivers them with an unflinching strength that makes the personal universal and paints a vivid portrait of an exact time or place with words and music. Like his songs, his rich, soulful vocals are forceful and commanding, seemingly old beyond his years. And the music, from smoldering soul ballads to gospel-fried funk to straight ahead rock 'n' roll, brings it all home with danceable grooves and a melodic freshness that will stay with you long after the album ends. Grey's songwriting influences are widespread. ...show less