"I think it's about the essence," he said of the "Unplugged" experience. "It's not about the technical thing that means 'Unplugged' but more so the essence of what you make the music become and how you express it."

That "essence" was captured in the "Unplugged" special as well as on a CD which features an intimate version of Maxwell's "Whenever Wherever Whatever" that earned the singer a Grammy nod. The "Unplugged" cut is a more intimate rendition of the song than the one that first appeared on his platinum-plus debut, "Urban Hang Suite," and has earned the singer a Best Male Pop Vocal Performance Grammy nomination.

Of course, Maxwell isn't resting on past successes. The singer hopes to release an album of new material later this year.

For more Grammy news, check out the [article id="1469939"]MTV News Grammy Archive[/article].