JMSN Stuns Marquis Theater With Radical Post-Punk Reinvention: Review

Christian Berishaj, better known as JMSN,  has never been an artist content to stay in one lane. But at the Marquis Theater on November 18, the Detroit native delivered what felt like a deliberate break from his past: a full-tilt plunge into experimental post-punk, complete with wiry guitars, pummeling drums and a stage presence that caught even longtime fans off guard.

Berishaj, whose fingerprints can be found across modern R&B through collaborations with Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and early the Weeknd, has long drawn from a wide palette. He cites Whitney Houston, Prince, Phil Collins, Fiona Apple and Radiohead as influences, and for years, his work rested comfortably in the realm of neo-soul, R&B, and the shadowy corners of alt-pop.

But that version of JMSN seemed almost intentionally absent. Emerging with his band dressed in grimy long johns, he bypassed most of his catalog, opting instead for raw, reimagined renditions of fan favorites like “Talk Is Cheap” and “Don’t Make Me Change.” What had once been smooth and sultry was now jagged, loud and unapologetic.

The shift comes on the heels of his successful 2023 album, Soft Spot, a record that fused soul, gospel, R&B and electronic textures and that ironically went viral a full year later. Even as “Soft Spot” found new life online and “Love Me” sparked TikTok jokes about what a Drake intro might sound like, Berishaj was already steering away from the algorithm’s gravitational pull. His latest release, …it’s only about you if you think it is, makes that pivot explicit: The pop/R&B era is gone.

Fans arrived murmuring hopes of hearing the warm, smoky soundscapes of past album cycles woven into his new direction. And while traces of the old JMSN surfaced, the night ultimately belonged to a version of the artist who is shedding skins in real time. What he’s stepping into is gritty, bass-driven and guitar-heavy, a brand-new world and a left turn that demands attention and, frankly, multiple listens.

JMSN is growing in public, refusing to be defined by expectation or digital metrics. It’s a risky evolution, but last night proved one thing: he’s unafraid of the consequences.

See more photos from the show below: