Soundcheck WNYC Studios

José James has often been called a “jazz singer for the hip hop generation,” having come to jazz through tracing hip hop samples and over the course of twelve records, he’s also incorporated R&B, soul, rock, funk, and Latin music into his songs. While he’s mostly sung his own music over the years, he has occasionally covered songs by some of his favorite artists: Bill Withers, Gil Scott-Heron, Erykah Badu and Billie Holiday.

James has just released a new album called 1978, which sees him looking back, past hip hop, to the soul music of the 70s. But this is soul music with a message; songs like “For Trayvon” make that clear. But it’s also message-music with soul: José James closes the album with “38th & Chicago,” which has a jazzy bassline, an almost bossa nova guitar sound, and a Caribbean lilt in the percusson. José James and his band play some of these hot grooves in-studio. -John Schaefer

Set list: 1. Let's Get It 2. Planet Nine 3. Saturday Night (Need You Now)

American indie rock-chamber collective, San Fermin, has been making lush, wide-angled Baroque-pop songs for more than a decade. The band was founded by Brooklyn-based keyboardist Ellis Ludwig Leone, who has multiple creative outlets as a songwriter, classical composer, and founding partner (with bandmate Allen Tate) of a record label focused on collaborations. The latest batch of 'immediate pop' songs on the 2024 album, Arms, is about things falling apart, but the process of making it brought people together, (Brooklyn Magazine). The band San Fermin plays some of these new songs, in-studio.

Set list: 1. Weird Environment 2. Didn't Want You To 3. Arms

France-based Cameroonian musician and composer Blick Bassy’s quiet and beautiful songs fall somewhere on the spectrum of R & B, pop, and folk, while the sounds of West and Central Africa have continued to resonate. His Bandcamp calls it "Africanity at the crossroads of soul, folk, and electro". Past albums by Bassy have also referenced Delta blues, and his latest effort, Mádibá, dedicated to the theme of water, is full of modern electronic beats, delicate guitars, brass arrangements, and rich Bassa vocals. Blick Bassy is about to release an extended version of that 2023 LP; it’s called M​á​dibá Ni Mbondi and is due out on May 17. Catch him on tour in the U.S.A. this May. -Caryn Havlik

Set List: 1."Loba" 2."Hola Me" 3."Li Yanga"




Mádibá Ni Mbondi by Blick Bassy

Vocalist and songwriter Lizz Wright is usually referred to as a jazz or gospel singer, and she certainly does sing both of those styles. But she’s also comfortable with blues and R&B and the Great American Songbook. Her latest album is called Shadow, and it features striking versions of songs by Cole Porter, Sandy Denny, and others. The record also includes a number of Lizz Wright’s own songs, which draw inspiration from her Southern upbringing in Georgia, and wander freely among the many styles of American music. “Shadow” happens to be Wright's studio debut under her label, Blues & Greens Records, a new step in her artistic freedom, and without the genre constraints imposed by record labels. Lizz Wright and her band perform some of these acoustic songs, in-studio. 

Set list: 1. Sparrow 2. Circling 3. Your Love

 

Reyna Tropical is led by guitarist, singer, songwriter and co-producer Fabi Reyna, who is the founder of She Shreds Media, dedicated to women and non-binary guitarists. Investigating landscapes of the tropical diaspora - from Cartagena, Colombia to Fajardo, Puerto Rico and Cuaji (la costa chica de Guerrero), the latest release, Malegr​í​a, is a collection of 20 tracks infused with the beat of all things tropical. The music is a blend of Latin rhythms with rock, dance music, and psychedelia and offers connection to the land and the ancestors as well as resilience, and a continuation—a celebration of spiritual survival pulsing with sunny dance beats. Reyna Tropical plays in-studio. - Caryn Havlik

Set list: 1. Suavecito 2. Catagena 3. Conexion Ancestral




Malegría by Reyna Tropical

Brooklyn-born rapper, producer & founding member of Flatbush Zombies, Erick the Architect released his debut solo LP, I’ve Never Been Here Before, in February. While it’s full of trenchant social commentary, it’s also focused on dealing with loss and finding freedom in vulnerability. The tracks draw from funk, gospel, soul, reggae and jazz, with throughlines to musical greats like John Coltrane and George Clinton (who contributed to the album). Erick the Architect and his touring trio bring their elastic funk basslines, character studies, killer beats, and spacey sound effects to perform in-studio.

Set list: 1. Ezekiel's Wheel 2. Beef Patty 3. Liberate




I've Never Been Here Before by Erick the Architect