Jazzmatazz
Jazzmatazz is a band project that was initiated by the American rapper Guru .
Career
Jazzmatazz was about achieving a fusion of jazz and hip-hop . Guru invited singers like N'Dea Davenport from Brand New Heavies and the French rapper MC Solaar to the studio and performed them with jazz musicians, including trumpeter Donald Byrd , vibraphonist Roy Ayers , guitarist Ronny Jordan and saxophonist Courtney Pine and Branford Marsalis , together. The first album Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1 was released on May 18, 1993 . It is considered the first successful fusion of musical styles and revolutionized jazz rap .
The second Jazzmatazz album documents music according to a very similar concept to the first. Perhaps one can foresee a certain expansion to soul music , manifested by the participation of artists such as Chaka Khan and the group Jamiroquai . In addition to some of the above musicians, the rappers Bahamadia , Kool Keith and Big Shug as well as the trumpeter Freddie Hubbard , the saxophonist Kenny Garrett and the pianist Ramsey Lewis are represented.
The third record with the programmatic title Streetsoul has an unmistakable harmony of soul and R 'n' B, and is strongly influenced by the larger number of participating soul artists, including Angie Stone , Erykah Badu , The Roots and the French vocalists Les Nubians . Jazz musicians Isaac Hayes and Herbie Hancock were also involved.
Discography
- 1993: Jazzmatazz, Vol. I: An Experimental Fusion of Hip-hop and Jazz (UK: gold)
- 1995: Jazzmatazz, Vol. II: The New Reality (UK:silver)
- 2001: Jazzmatazz, Vol. III: Streetsoul (UK:silver)
- 2007: Jazzmatazz, Vol. IV: The Hip Hop Jazz Messenger: Back to the Future
- 2008: Guru's Jazzmatazz; The Mixtape - Back to the Future