Ask Dwele his favorite song from “Subject,” his 2003 debut album, and the soul singer will hem and haw a bit before narrowing the options to two. The tone-setting “Truth” makes the cut because of its ...

He’d rather play, OK? Instead of talking over the phone about his musicianship, Dwele (that’s dwell-lay) would rather let you feel it in a mellow riff on his keyboard or in a liquid run on his bass.

The 26-year-old Andwele "Dwele" Gardner is a soul artist with a difference: he may hail from the city that gave us Motown, but his brand of soul is anything but pop, and although the majority of songs ...