Thandiswa

Acclaimed GRAMMY-winning multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter Meshell Ndegeocello makes her Blue Note Records debut with The Omnichord Real Book, a visionary, expansive, and deeply jazz-influenced album that marks the start of a new chapter in her career. Following her 2018 album Ventriloquism, Meshell returns with an album of new original material that taps into a broad spectrum of her musical roots. The Omnichord Real Book was produced by Josh Johnson and features a wide range of guest artists including Jason Moran, Ambrose Akinmusire, Joel Ross, Jeff Parker, Brandee Younger, Julius Rodriguez, Mark Guiliana, Cory Henry, Joan As Police Woman, Thandiswa, and others.

South African jazz is a pertinent reminder of the intrinsic link between music and the dismantling of oppression. This Rough Guide celebrates the legacy of many of the great players and showcases the wealth of burgeoning jazz talent emerging from the Rainbow Nation.

'The Concert in Hyde Park' chronicles the legendary artist's historic concert at the 2012 Hard Rock Calling Festival in London with an epic career-spanning set including Simon s most enduring hits ("Kodachrome," "Graceland," "Me and Julio Down By The Schoolyard," "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover"), fan favorites, and two Simon & Garfunkel classics. The concert features a reunion with the original Graceland musicians on the Grammy-winning album's 25th anniversary, including Hugh Masekela and Ladysmith Black Mambazo, as well as a surprise appearance from reggae legend Jimmy Cliff, performing his original songs "The Harder They Come" and "Many Rivers to Cross", and a duet with Cliff and Simon on "Vietnam" and "Mother and Child Reunion."

US-based, Grammy-nominated Rwandan and Ugandan singer-songwriter Somi’s Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba lovingly celebrates the musical contributions of the late "first lady of African song." With intergenerational contributions by Seun Kuti, Thandiswa Mazwai, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Nduduzo Makhathini, and Angelique Kidjo, a pan-Africanist thread runs through this 17-track commemoration, released on what would have been Makeba’s 90th birthday. Articulating Makeba’s sonic vocabulary, Somi distils messages of womanhood, homecoming, social justice, and political strife while employing and re-imagining several idioms. Scouring Makeba’s catalogue, South African jazz of yesteryear coalesces with contemporary contexts to both memorialize and reinvigorate. The sanguine keys of the Gregory Porter-assisted “Love Tastes Like Strawberries” meet the arresting vocal performances of both Somi and folk artist Msaki on “Khuluma”. It’s the electronically-tinged rework of “Pata Pata” that best encapsulates Somi’s aims by crafting melodies with darker hues to explore Makeba’s ethos more broadly.