Marcus King and Drew Smithers play intimate acoustic show in Beaver Creek

After racking up thousands of miles touring as The Marcus King Band, Marcus King plays an acoustic show with Drew Smithers on Friday at Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek.

King’s debut album came out in 2020 and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album. Last year’s release, “Mood Swings,” took a very different direction sonically with its fusion of modern pop, R&B, hip-hop, jazz and piano-driven classic rock. Meanwhile, naked emotion comes through in songs like “Hero” and “Delilah.” The record ends with “Cadillac,” a psychedelic symphonic soul tale of heartbreak and depression. While it sounds intense, it carries a great message of hope.

Legendary producer and author of “The Creative Act: A Way of Being” Rick Rubin cold-called King after seeing him live, saying he’d like to work together. Rubin helped King discover a new personal and musical approach to the musician’s struggles with mental health.

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“He helped me view mental health as a writing partner in a way,” King said. “I’ve learned it can give me that creative spark.”

Through the album, King accepts his challenges, stands in his truth and emerges as a renewed man.

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“Without this assembly of songs, I don’t think I’d be around. I hope this album can act as a safety blanket, a rescue or a refuge for anybody struggling with mental health, substance abuse or relationship issues. That’s what it is for me,” he said.

Throughout his career, King has openly written about his challenges with mental health through songs, and last year, he started the Curfew Fellowship Fund, which supports musicians facing mental health and addiction. The name, Curfew, comes from Matt Reynolds (nicknamed Curfew), a singer-songwriter friend and tour manager who took his own life in 2017. King also plans to focus on other needs through the fund, such as supporting fine art programs and providing instruments and funds to schools.

King also partnered with Stand Together and the 1 Million Strong Impact, which aims to transform approaches to addiction and recovery; he supports sober touring musicians and fans. These days, he said the high he’s chasing doesn’t revolve around self-medicating to feel “something, anything.” Instead, he’s interested in being fully present with the music and the audience.

He and Stand Together Music believe that since music brings people together, breaks down barriers and accelerates change, it also offers the opportunity to drive progress within the realms of addiction and mental health.

Within King’s sober lifestyle, he hasn’t lost his edge, including the vibrato of his voice and profound delivery on stage. His vocals are front and center more than ever. As Premier Guitar wrote: His vocals, which are “part Al Green, Bobby Womack, Marvin Gaye, Adele and Chris Stapleton (are) set to establish him as one of the greatest vocalists of our time, no longer in the shadow of his own guitar greatness.”

“Marcus is a once-in-a-generation talent whose voice and songwriting transcend genres,” said Owen Hutchinson, the artistic director at the Vilar. “The acoustic nature of this performance will showcase the emotion and storytelling that have made him a musical force. It’s a rare opportunity to experience his soulful sound in such an up-close and personal setting, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to host him on the Vilar stage.”