Acclaimed Grammy Award winners Kirk Whalum and
Norman Brown, multiple Grammy Award Nominee Gerald Albright, and fast
rising jazz artiste Shelea Frazier have arrived in Kenya.
The four, who will perform their widely celebrated
A Gospel According to Jazz, will kick off their performances at the Carnivore Grounds in Nairobi on 3rd December before taking the show to Mombasa’s Haller Park on 5th December, in what will be the first performance of its kind
in the coastal city since the launch of the Safaricom Jazz Lounge.
Kirk Whalum is famous for touring with the late Whitney Houston for seven years and for having had a
solo part in her single “I will always love you”, the best-selling single by a female artist in music history.
He will be joined on stage by equally illustrious musician Gerald Albright, a multi-instrumentalist
who has sold over one million albums in the United States of America alone.
Completing
the ensemble will be Norman Brown – famous for his work with Boyz II
Men and Stevie Wonder
– and Shelea Frazier, a fast-rising singer, songwriter and producer who
shot into the spotlight following her widely celebrated tribute to
Whitney Houston.
“In
February we hosted over 10,000 jazz lovers at the Safaricom
International Jazz Festival held at
the Ngong Racecourse, and in August had the pleasure of bringing Salif
Keita to Kenya for the Safaricom Jazz Lounge, so we see there is great
demand for high quality live jazz music concerts,” said Safaricom CEO
Bob Collymore.
“As
a build-up to the 2016 edition of the Jazz Festival in February – where
three-time Grammy Award
Winner Branford Marsalis (below) will perform – we are honoured to have the
opportunity to have four of the best jazz musicians of our time joining
us to usher in the festive season.”
Curtain-raising for the quartet will be Kenyan acts Edward Parseen (below) and the Different Faces Band, and
AfroSync, who have made their names in the Kenyan jazz scene thanks to their unique sounds.
“As
has been the tradition with our jazz concerts, all proceeds from the
Safaricom Jazz Lounge in both
Nairobi and Mombasa, and the Safaricom International Jazz Festival,
will go towards supporting the Korogocho-based Ghetto Classics music
programme,” added Mr. Collymore.
Ghetto Classics offers music education to over 300 underprivileged youth, and has so far benefitted
from an estimated Ksh.12 million raised through Safaricom’s jazz music properties.
Tickets to the Safaricom Jazz Lounge go on sale on Friday 20th
November, and will be retailing
at Ksh.1,500 for advance tickets, Ksh.2,000 at the gate and Ksh.500 for
students. They will be available from select Safaricom outlets (Sarit
Centre, Thika Road Mall, Galleria Mall, Junction Mall, BuruBuru, Village
Market, I&M and Nakumatt Mega in Nairobi,
and Nyali and Rex Shop in Mombasa).
