With his return coming in the form of a surprise appearance at the 2008 BET Awards performing “Simply Beautiful” as part of a tribute for Al Green, Maxwell’s more conservative look with the departure of his afro and sideburns served as a lead-up to his fourth album BLACKsummers'night, released the following year on July 7, 2009. His most recent album thus far, blackSUMMERS'night, was released almost seven years later on July 1, 2016.