In November 2015, Anderson .Paak played a show at Sydney's Manning Bar to just under 1,000 people. This summer, he'll headline Falls Festival after playing nearly every major festival in the country over the past few years. It's been a sharp rise for .Paak over the space of just 3 years and it's all to do with the strength of his live performances as well as his recorded material which has made him one of the most sought after names in music. 

In 2015 when .Paak played in Australia he was yet to release his breakthrough second album Malibu but he had been a heavy collaborator on Dr. Dre's 2015 record Compton creating a healthy buzz around the Californian singer and drummer. When Malibu arrived early in 2016, people were interested but it certainly wasn't a superstar entrance. The album peaked just inside the top 100 both here and in the US, drawing rave reviews but garnering little commercial support.

As a cohesive project Malibu was a triumph. Featuring the likes of Schoolboy Q and BJ The Chicago Kid, he crafted an autobiographical record that put soul at its heart. From there he branched into other genres like electronic (Am I Wrong?) and James Brown funk (Come Down). Every song bled with this exuberant passion for music that few in the modern industry are able to exude.

That year, .Paak became everyone's favourite feature artist. He provided balance to Kaytranada's woozy beat on Glowed Up, stole the show with his hook on Mac Miller's Dang, made Macklemore's Dance Off tolerable and brought raw soul to Chance The Rapper's Blessings. By the end of the year, he'd notched up an impressive resumé that proved him to be one of the go-to names in hip-hop and RnB. Usually a collaborator list like that will generate enough hype to last a lifetime but there was something else that was getting people talking.

.Paak's live show is extraordinary. He brings a James Brown energy to the stage that has a whole crowd screaming "yes lawd" like they're at church. He plays drums and freestyles at the same taking all of his recordings to another level that would make even the most uninterested participant convert to the church of .Paak. In early 2016, he played an outer stage at Coachella that would become one of the most talked about of the entire weekend. Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar and T.I. all joined him for surprise performances but not even they could top the pure magic of .Paak perched at the drums freestyling about his first pair of Nikes before launching into The Season with The Free Nationals bringing it in the background.

Just months later .Paak was announced on the bill for Listen Out in Australia. .Paak was on there with A$AP Ferg and Travis Scott but his mid-afternoon set at the festival was an unbeatable highlight. After a number of the shows, he turned up at bars and performed on tables. He's got this unstoppable energy that just bleeds through every crowd he plays for, whether it be a small bar or a huge festival crowd. 

Later that year, .Paak once again teamed up with frequent collaborator Knxwledge and turned out another album Yes Lawd! With throwback samples and innovative, glitchy soul production, it was yet another dimension to .Paak's sonics and one that actually launched him higher in the charts than Malibu. 

Last year was actually a slower year for .Paak than usual but it would still count as a busy year for most. He ticked Glastonbury off the list, was nominated for a Grammy and featured on tracks with SiR and Rapsody. He revealed in an interview with Flying Lotus for Interview assisting his band The Free Nationals in putting together their debut album. Their project has begun to surface this year beginning with Love & Essex, released just a few months ago.

With Oxnard in view for 2018, things have heated up once again for .Paak this year. He ticked off yet another milestone in Australia, headlining Laneway Festival with no new music since the last time he was here and will make a repeat return for Falls Festival. By Falls, however, he will have released Oxnard and with lead single TINTS already burning up the airwaves on triple j, they're set to be some of his biggest shows yet.

Oxnard hasn't been his only project this year though. He contributed to the Black Panther soundtrack, lending his vocals to the stellar James Blake-featuring Bloody Waters. He also turned up on T.I.'s Dime Trap all those years after he joined him on-stage at Coachella. 

His first taste of his own new music came this year when an Apple ad featuring FKA twigs emerged, soundtracked by .Paak's Til It's Over. Driven largely by experimental electronica, twigs effortlessly slinked her way around to the track in the surreal ad. The track was later released in full and while it won't be included on Oxnard, it's one of his greatest tracks to date. Oxnard also won't include Bubblin, a frantic, freight-train of a song, making us wonder how good the album is going to be if these cuts didn't even make the final version

The album arrives on Friday to much more fanfare than what surrounded Malibu. He's called it the album he's "dreamed of making since high school," and it feels like the perfect time to deliver it. .Paak has been on the grind for many years and now feels like the perfect time for a victory lap. The album was produced with Dr. Dre and features a guest list including Kendrick Lamar, Pusha T, BJ The Chicago Kid and Q-Tip. It's too early to call but even a seasoned better would have some faith in labelling it one of the albums of the year. 

YES LAWD!