September 26th, 2025 – Today, double-platinum rapper, singer, and songwriterPaul Russell drops his latest dance worthy single “Keeper,” out now via Arista Records. The new single is a song of celebration and love rooted in inspiration from the sounds of the late 70s and early 80s. Last night, Paul brought his energy to San Francisco as the surprise guest at The Jonas Brothers show performing his hit single “Lil Boo Thang!”
“Keeper” is about choosing someone despite all of the flaws or details that might make you want to rip your hair out. For Paul Russell, the woman can still be a “keeper” even if she “keeps me up tryna please her,” he sings over the old school beat. Discussing “Keeper” Paul Russell shares, “As with a lot of my music, my hope is that the song gives people joy and gets them moving. The shimmer-y melody on the keys and that pounding 4 on the floor kick are meant to transport people to a celebration where they can’t help but get on their feet and have a good time.” The positivity and happiness seeps through the song and lyrics making it impossible to not smile while listening.
Paul is known to celebrate within his music as his last single “Carat Cake” revolved around rejoicing and spoiling the one you love. The recent releases tie in to the overall goal for Paul as he states, “Keeper represents my commitment to making songs that talk about love in a modern way but using traditional, ‘old school’ instruments and techniques. The idea is to create timeless music – something people can relate to no matter what their age is.” In a recent performance of “Carat Cake” with ‘The Spark by Discover, Paul shares more of his creation process and mindset of the importance of staying true to himself and the authenticity of being human. The cabin where the performance takes place in Lake Arrowhead is where both “Carat Cake” and “Keeper” were created.
Paul shared a series of hilarious “Carat Cake” short videos on his popular TikTok account, where he’s also been teasing the completion of a yet-to-be-announced funk-soul album. In May, he shared the flirtatious Saweetie team-up “That Girl,” a pitch-perfect tribute to ’90s new jack swing that came with a heist-themed music video. He also appeared earlier this year on the globetrotting soul-pop confection “Confessions” with Flo Rida and K-pop group ENHYPEN.
Before that came Paul’s 2024 debut EP, again sometime?, which included hits like “Slippin’” featuring Meghan Trainor and the song that started it all, “Lil Boo Thang.” The latter hit #14 on the Hot 100, made Barack Obama’s summer playlist, and has racked up 830 million streams to date. Meanwhile, EP highlight “Say Cheese” was named one of the Best Hip-Hop Songs of the Year by HipHopDX and “Eat Pray Love” got a sunny remix from Free Nationals.
Along the way, Paul has brought his undeniable charisma to performances across the globe, including stops at the White House and on American Idol, embarking on his first European run in support of Teddy Swims, and hitting North American arenas on Trainor’s Timeless Tour.
