Watch from Thursday 22 April until end of May

Vocalist Somi’s hybrid style of music integrates the essence of jazz and soul with the musical depth of her Ugandan and Rwandan heritage and has attracted collaborations from Paul Simon and Angélique Kidjo. 

Now based in New York, Somi developed her rich vocal sound in America. She first played in the UK as part of EFG London Jazz Festival, and we brought her back when she was mentored by Hugh Masekela, and is a recent Grammy nominee.

The Voices of Hope performance, recently filmed in Senegal, follows the premiere of in the absence of things, a film that blends spoken word, art song, movement, and deconstructed concert recordings. It is Somi’s meditation on how a performer feels in the absence of the living stage and the spiritual consequences on creativity of lockdown

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