Music

Hear ‘America’s Got Talent’ semifinalist Robert Finley in Medford

"He's the greatest living soul singer as far as I'm concerned," said Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys.

Robert Finley. Alysse Gafjken

1 minute to read

Louisiana-born blues singer and guitarist Robert Finley was 62 years old when he released his debut album in 2016. It bore the appropriate title “Age Don’t Mean A Thing” and won him a fan in Dan Auerbach of the multi-platinum-selling band the Black Keys.

Auerbach — who said of Finley, “He’s the greatest living soul singer as far as I’m concerned” — would subsequently produce the 2017 follow-up “Goin’ Platinum!” and this year’s autobiographical “Sharecropper’s Son.”

In between the release of the latter two albums, Finley was a contestant on “America’s Got Talent.” The visually impaired musician told the judges before his first performance, “Music was always a passion of mine, so I’d say I had to lose my physical sight so that I could see my true destiny.” He made it all the way to the semifinals.

Finley has performed throughout North America and Europe since 2017. This year, he has opened for Blues Traveler and The Black Keys, reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Blues Albums Chart, and appeared on the cover of SPIN, which described “Sharecropper’s Son” as “one of the finest albums of the year.”

His show at The Porch Southern Fare & Juke Joint in Medford on Oct. 14 will mark his first visit to the Boston area since his 2018 stop at Brighton Music Hall.