SOM releases Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba, a tribute to the late music veteran
By CityLife Arts Writer
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, internationally acclaimed GRAMMY® -nominated vocalist SOMI releases her new single, “Love Tastes Like Strawberries,” featuring two-time GRAMMY® Award-winning songwriter and vocalist Gregory Porter. The song is the third to be released from Somi’s fifth studio album, Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba, a deeply personal tribute to the legendary Miriam Makeba, and will be released on March 4th, which would have been Makeba’s 90th birthday.
SOMI’s latest single, Love Tastes Like Strawberries, puts the jazz/soul singer in a shared spotlight with Gregory Porter.
“Many years ago, and long before the making of this album, my mentor, the late Hugh Masekela, told me to check out ‘Love Tastes Like Strawberries’ as a possible cover. So I decided to invite Gregory Porter to record it with me as a duet in tribute to Makeba’s 1965 Grammy-Award-winning album, An Evening with Belafonte/Makeba, that featured a series of duets; with her Makeba’s mentor, Harry Belafonte.” Listen to Somi’s sultry minimalist duet featuring the incomparable vocalist Gregory Porter HERE https://orcd.co/lovetasteslikestrawberries
In recognition of Makeba’s resonance throughout Africa and the diaspora, Somi invited several special guests to perform on Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba including from South Africa: Grammy-winning male vocal group, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, singer-songwriter Msaki, vocalist and activist Thandiswa Mazwai, and jazz pianist-composer Nduduzo Makhathini. In addition to Gregory Porter, additional guests include Nigerian singer-musician Seun Kuti (Fela Kuti’s youngest son), and GRAMMY® Award-winning singer-songwriter and activist Angelique Kidjo.
In celebration of her Makeba’s milestone birthday, Salon Africana will present Somi and Friends: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba, a festive celebration of Miriam Makeba’s life scheduled for March 19 at the historic Apollo Theater in
Somi Kakoma is a GRAMMY®-nominated East African Jazz vocalist, songwriter, playwright, and actor of Rwandan and Ugandan descent. Her last album, Holy Room – Live at Alte Oper with Frankfurt Radio Big Band, was released shortly after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and ultimately earned her a 2021 Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album. With that nomination, Somi became the first African woman ever nominated in any of the Grammy jazz categories. The album also won the 2021 NAACP Image Award in the Outstanding Jazz Vocal Album category.
SOMI has released seven acclaimed albums, scoring positions on the World Music, Jazz, and Heat seekers charts. Her previous songs have featured guests including Common, Angelique Kidjo, and renowned South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela, who became her longtime mentor.
She has been widely honored as a Soros Equality Fellow, a TED Senior Fellow, a USA Doris Duke Fellow, a 2021 Grammy nominee, and a recipient of two NAACP Image Awards. She performed at Carnegie Hall alongside Hugh Masekela, Dave Matthews, and Vusi Mahlasela in celebration of South African democracy, and was invited by UN Secretary General to perform in commemoration of the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery.
Somi is the founder of Salon Africana, a boutique arts agency and label for contemporary African musicians and writers. She holds undergraduate degrees in Anthropology and African Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a master’s degree in Performance Studies from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and is currently pursuing a doctorate in Creative Practice & Critical Inquiry at Harvard University. www.somimusic.com
Harlem, NY. For tickets, click here https://www.apollotheater.org/event/somi-and-friends-the-reimagination-of-miriam-makeba/
Pre-order Zenzile: The Reimagination of Miriam Makeba here –https://linktr.ee/somimusic