José James // SFJAZZ Center
Sing Sing Sing Series: A week devoted to artists bringing fresh perspectives to the vocal jazz tradition.
"Sultry one moment, commanding the next, he holistically heals the rift between radio-friendly songcraft and virtuoso flair. " — NPR
A deep and soulful young vocalist whose international profile has exploded in the last few years, José James has transcended his reputation as a jazz singer to embrace influences including R&B, Moroccan Gnawa music, hip-hop and gospel. James’s flexibility and omnivorous musical taste is reflected in his hugely diverse résumé, which includes work with jazz great Chico Hamilton as well as electronica hero Flying Lotus. In his review for The New York Times, writer Ben Ratliff described James as “a romantic baritone with a deep-funk band, stretching out songs, evoking both the ’70s of Roberta Flack and Gil Scott-Heron and the ’90s and oughts of J Dilla.” On the heels of the beguiling Billie Holiday centennial tribute Yesterday I Had the Blues, James returns with Love in a Time of Madness, a full-force jump into contemporary R&B that blends moody soul, electronic pop, and trap beats, with the occasional influence of African folk, American gospel and Minneapolitan funk. Talking about the new album, James says, “Movement has been on my mind. Not just hearts and minds – I want people to hit the dance floor. I could make jazz albums the rest of my life, but I want to reach people, man. I like Jamie xx as much as I like Miles Davis, you know?"
Venue and address
SFJAZZ, 201 Franklin St, 94102 San Francisco
- Fri05/11/20187:30 PMTickets
Tickets for May 11, 2018
José James // SFJAZZ Center
This event in San Francisco was published by SFJAZZ.