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A collection of newsworthy jazz headlines.

Last week, Revive introduced our new weekly round-up of the latest in jazz-related news, featuring stories about the Soulquarians, Newport Jazz Fest, the resurgence of jazz, and more. “This Week in Jazz” brings you a collection of jazz-related headlines, focusing on news, video, and articles in the new generation of jazz / hip-hop / soul. See below for the headlines you don’t want to miss this week.

ERYKAH BADU TINY DESK CONCERT with KEYON HARROLD, KENNETH WHALUM & MORE

(NPR Music)

NPR’s Tiny Desk is a tiny concert space with a not-so tiny mass following. The latest to grace the “stage” is none other than Erykah Badu. True to fashion, her set delivered us an otherworldly 15 minutes like only Ms. Badu could. With a set of seriously talented backing band members – Kenneth Whalum (Sax), Keyon Harrold (Trumpet), Dwayne Kerr (Flute), RC Williams (Keys), Braylon Lacy (bass), Cleon Edwards (Drums), and Frank Moka (Percussion) – Badu’s stunning and transportive vocal performance steals the show. Between extended renditions of “Rimshot” and “Green Eyes,” both laden with jazz and hiphop, this Tiny Desk Concert is well worth a listen.

“Erykah Badu is an artist for the ages. To old-school jazz fans like myself, names like Nina Simone, Betty Carter and Shirley Horn come to mind as much as Billie Holiday because of Badu’s singular approach to a lyric. They all cut their own creative path and left behind a legacy that you can identify with just one note. Erykah Badu is on that same path, and one day her name will be mentioned along with the other Elders who share her spirit of musical adventure.”

Read more on the experience at NPR Tiny Desk.

ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE: ARETHA’S LIFE IN JAZZ

(NPR Music)


The world lost perhaps the greatest voice it has ever know yesterday. As fans everywhere mourned the passing of the beloved Queen of Soul, jazz critic Nate Chinen shared his mediations on her role in jazz. While Aretha Franklin was primarily known for soul music, her relationship with jazz had a major impact on both her legacy and jazz itself.

“Jazz was central to her musicianship, however far she rambled. Without it we’d be remembering a different artist now, and celebrating a different body of work.

That Franklin isn’t often understood in these terms has something to do with commercial reception. Her musical trajectory, in a typical bit of showbiz reductionism, often gets framed in prodigal terms: She was forged by gospel fires, and lost her way in songbook razzle-dazzle until leaving Columbia for Atlantic Records, where a stripped-down, soul-forward style reconnected her with her sanctified roots. And boom: Respect.”

Read the full article at NPR.

HOW MELANIE CHARLES, SINGER AND FLUTIST, SPENDS HER SUNDAYS

(NYTimes’ Sunday Routine)

The New York Times’ Sunday Routine column gives readers an intimate glimpse into the life of known New Yorkers as they go about their Sunday – a day usually reserved for rest, relaxation, recuperation, and the quiet moments only close friends and family see. Recently, they followed singer and flutist Melanie Charles through her day of music, friends, and joy.

“She chants; listens to cassette tapes; plays flute for a yoga class; eats expensive burgers; shops vintage; plays gigs; and sometimes goes dancing.

The musician Melanie Jean-Baptiste Charles, also known as D’Flower, recently performed alongside SZA on “Saturday Night Live” and recorded with Gorillaz. Ms. Charles, 30, who released a debut EP called “The Girl With the Green Shoes” earlier this year, usually can be found in clubs across the city three or four nights a week, playing her unclassifiable blend of soul, jazz and experimental sounds with or without her trademark flute.”

Read the full piece here.

REVIEW: DORIAN CONCEPT THE NATURE OF IMITATION

(Pitchfork)


Known as one of the leading sources for reputable music reviews, Pitchfork recently reviewed the new album of Dorian Concept. Signed to Brainfeeder (home of Flying Lotus, Kamasi Washington, Thundercat), and associate of FlyLo himself, Oliver Johnson delivered an album that both fits the renowned Brainfeeder sound and marks itself a stand-alone work.

“On his second solo album, Austrian producer and Flying Lotus associate Oliver Johnson puts his own eclectic spin on FlyLo’s brand of over-caffeinated astral jazz and hiccuping robo-breaks… The fanfare that opens the album, in the intro to ‘Promises,’ does bring to mind the mix of orchestral fanfare and free-jazz blasts on You’re Dead!, though Johnson pivots from there, toggling between Lonnie Liston Smith-style spiritual drift and fusion. Careening from blissed-out to wonky and back, he crafts a sonic zigzag that carries through the rest of the album.”

Read the full review at Pitchfork.

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