Two Releases 3/20/12
Esperanza Spalding drops Radio Music Society today featuring producer, Q-Tip and special guests Joe Lovano, Terri Lyne Carrington, Billy Hart, Jack DeJohnette, Lalah Hathaway, Algebra Blessett, and more. The groove-oriented album is rooted is rooted in jazz sensibilities, but made for the average music consumer. It is both relatable and intricate, paying homage to legends and unknowns alike.
NPR First Listen: Esperanza Spalding’s Radio Music Society
It seems the radio is a popular subject this season. After the release of Black Radio I asked myself, “What could album could possibly distract me from listening to this?” Alas NPR has graced us with a First Listen of Esperanza Spalding’s widely anticipated Radio Music Society. Sit back and take a listen:
Best 2011 Features: The Hip Hop & Jazz Debate
Since this Issue is a major focus of our site, we decided to re-launch Issue No. 2 The Hip Hop and Jazz Debate, which came out in Jan. of 2011. If you didn’t get a chance to read through all of our great features, now is your chance to go through them one by one, including a lengthy list of album reviews. Top Features from this Issue include Weldon Irvine, Respect the Architect: DJs Are Musicians, Word on Rap: The Vocal Instrument, Jazz Poetry, Rap: Cause and Effect of the Black Arts Movement, Insane in the Left Brain and DJ with Live Band vs DJ with Emcee.
Bilal and The Soul of Philadelphia
It was the era that produced Bilal Sayeed Oliver; a man who grew from progeny of the church to prodigy of the jazz circuit well before getting a good grip on life as a freshman at the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts; a factory of local talent that boasts Boyz II Men and The Roots amongst notable alumni. Philadelphia is a strange town, amongst few others across the nation, including Washington D.C. and New Orleans, where children still learn to play instruments despite the non-existent budget for arts and culture in schools.
A Conversation with Esperanza Spalding
When I’m practicing, or when anyone’s practicing, we’re honing the details. We’re studying physically how to become agile. We’re working out, in sort of frozen time, meaning we can take a long time with a concept or an idea or a pattern or sound if we need to, until we have access to it physically, and intellectually. We can sort of stop the clock, so to speak, and we can go in and hone in the details.
Q-Tip Kamaal/The Abstract
(Battery) 2009 Kamaal/The Abstract, which was originally supposed to be released in 2002, came to fruition around the same time that Q-Tip was working with and appeared on Roy Hargrove’s, Hard Groove as well as a few other jazz musicians during that time. Putting the album in this context helps shed some light on the [...]
Jazz: Where Are We Going Wrong?
What is wrong with jazz today? This is a broad question that, in the coming weeks, will be hit upon numerous time as a form of self-reflection for improvement. It is not to say there are not amazing things happening in the jazz world every day, yet the scene today differs vastly from the times of Dizzy and Bird, or Miles and Trane.
“Boom-Bip With a Brother Named Tip”
Sitting down with Q-Tip is always a double edged sword, excitement to talk shop with a literal reference point in music, but also disappointment that there are enough stories and questions to last days, so choosing wisely is a necessity because time is short with a man who remains just as relevant to music today as he was when he hit the scene with Tribe decades ago. Even so, we got down to the gritty details of what fuels him and his recent collaborations with guitar virtuoso Kurt Rosenwinkel.
Exclusive “One Won’t Do Pt. 2″ Concert Footage & Interviews
DROM got lit up Friday night with point on performances by the likes of Illa J (who also took a stab at the piano for his set), T3 of Slum Village, and Q-Tip who was later joined by fellow Tribe member Jarobi for a few classics including “Award Tour,” which closed out the night. In between sets DJ Metaphysic and Mick Boogie held down the Dilla duty, parsing through Jay’s tracks to the delight of the audience. Overall the night was made special by the love put into it by all of the performers, as well as Ma Dukes and Joylette Hunter, head of the J Dilla Foundation and Dilla’s former fiancé.
Thursday February 3rd – ONE WON’T DO PT. 2: J DILLA TRIBUTE & FUNDRAISER
Among the myriad of Dilla tribute shows happening in the next week or so, “One Won’t Do Pt. 2,” a collaborative effort by The J. Dilla Foundation, ThisIsRealMusic.com and The Smooth Operators Movement, stands out as one of the most exciting. Building on the success of last year’s event, the team got together to make it even more exciting this year by bringing you performances by Dilla’s brother Illa J, along with T3 from Slum Village and Q-Tip.
According to Twitter, Q-Tip Producing Esperanza Spalding’s Next Album
According to Q-Tip’s Twitter, Esperanza Spalding’s next album will be produced by Q-Tip. It’s unclear at this point when the album will come out or if all the details are officially confirmed, but the combination of both of these incredibly innovative and popular musicians will definitely be something to get amped about. Watch The Revivalist [...]
Burniss Earl Travis II
Now based in Brooklyn, New York, the 23-year-old Travis is back on the live music scene after a year-long hiatus, and is ready to explore a new musical territory. Certainly not one of the gabbiest, and unsure at first exactly what he could offer our session together, it turned out that he actually was flooded with ideas once we got started, as is true with most musicians when given a chance to talk about the thing that they love most. Music.
Norah Jones …Featuring
More so a homage to her collaborations with talented artists than a new release, Norah Jones’ forthcoming …Featuring shows where Norah has been in the past decade or so. If you have been following her career at all, you won’t be surprised to find her collection to be wide and diverse. Norah has such a distinctively deep timbre that literally feels good to listen to; it’s no wonder her musical peers continue to seek out her vocal prowess.
