What better way to kick-off the summer months than with a trip to Louisiana and Havana? Courtesy of some of the best soul, funk, and hip-hop artists around, The Soul Rebels and Cimafunk are bringing the heat to the Jack Singer Concert Hall.
Starting in the humid heat of New Orleans, The Soul Rebels have brought their contemporary eight-piece brass ensemble to the stage for unexpected collaborations with some of the music industry's top performers: Katy Perry (watch video here), Green Day, Macklemore, Metallica, Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Seal, and Eurythmics to name just a few, as well as their cover of “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This” going viral back in 2013.
Since then they've harnessed the power of their live shows to bring a distinctive party-like atmosphere to the stage. With music steeped in New Orleans brass traditions but with a popular twist, it's an addictive combination of stark bright horns, deep rhythmic percussions, and an easy-going flow that begs to be moved to.
“The missing link between Public Enemy and Louis Armstrong.” — Village Voice
From New Orleans, we venture over to Havana and an "Afro-Cuban Rockstar." From the first soft strains of Parar el Tiempo to the intoxicating Me Voy, Cimafunk stays true to foundational Cuban rhythms while incorporating contemporary sounds from the US and Africa. The result is a fusion of not only musical styles but Cimafunk's own Afro-Latin identity. In fact, his stage name references the cimarróns - colonial-era escaped slaves who formed self-sustaining communities in Cuba.
In 2021, his album El Alimento was named by both Rolling Stone and NPR as one of the best albums of the year and received a Grammy nomination for Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album.
“Cimafunk takes it back there while keeping it in the now. It’s what we do, always reinventing the Funk to keep it fresh.” — George Clinton
So what brings these two funk powerhouses together? On March 6, 2020, Cimafunk and The Soul Rebels released Caliente with Tarriona "Tank" Ball, and the song was praised as an exquisite combination of Cuban and New Orleans traditions, all rooted in African origins. At the Getting Funky in Havana Music Festival, NPR described it as “full of high emotions, amazing music and a constant reminder that Havana and New Orleans are, in fact connected by history that goes back centuries.”
Join Arts Commons Presents and the BD&P World Stage series on June 23rd for an electric double-bill performance of The Soul Rebels and Cimafunk that will have you dancing in your seat (and the isle, and the hall, and in the street…)!
Thank you to BD&P Law for sponsoring the World Stage series.
Kiani Evans is the Manager of Digital Communications for Arts Commons. She grew up in the rural Cariboo region of British Columbia and acquired a diploma in Art History on Vancouver Island (and refuses to give it back). She is delighted by all things art and takes joy in small moments, like finding lost change or missing socks. Kiani had trouble writing this bio, so she Googled “how to write a bio.” It didn’t help.
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