RICHARD RODGERS, PRET-A-PORTER

Tony- and Grammy-winning vocalist Billy Porter will unveil The Soul of Richard Rodgers, his star-studded, musically adventurous tour of the great American composer's work, on 4/14; the set, released on Bee & El/Sony Masterworks Broadway, is available for pre-order starting Friday.

Porter, who conquered Broadway as the star of Kinky Boots, is joined by such fellow vocal greats as Color Purple star Cynthia Erivo, Hamilton breakouts Leslie Odom Jr., Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Christopher Jackson; Grammy winners India.Arie and Pentatonix. Also appearing on the collection: Grammy favorites Deborah Cox and Ledisi; and stage stars Patina Miller (Pippin), Todrick Hall (Kinky Boots), Joshua Henry (Shuffle Along/Hamilton ) and Brandon Victor Dixon (Shuffle Along/Hamilton/Motown: The Musical), who have a blinding collection of Tony wins and noms between them.

The Soul of Richard Rodgers includes, among other renditions, Porter's spellbinding take on "Edelweiss" from The Sound of Music, which resonates powerfully in this politically tumultuous moment; a modern spin on Oklahoma's "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning" with a cappella geniuses Pentatonix; an incandescent "My Funny Valentine" with Erivo; a very pointed "Carefully Taught" with India.Arie; an updated "I"m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair" with Todrick Hall and a sleek, funky "Lady Is a Tramp" with young rapper Zaire Park.

"I like to think of this as the Richard Rodgers
version of the Hamilton Mixtapes," says Porter.

"I like to think of this as the Richard Rodgers version of the Hamilton Mixtapes," says Porter of this, his fourth studio album and first as producer (with collaborators James Sampliner and Michael "Lofey" Sandlofer). "These are classic songs that everybody knows and loves, and I’m so excited for people to hear them in a brand new way."

Porter kicks off a national tour on 3/19 at Bayside, NY's Queensborough PAC and wraps up in August at Provincetown, MA's Paramount Theater.