Hip-Hop Lives Here
Hip-Hop Lives Here
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Ezra Collective have unveiled details of their fourth studio album, ‘Here Because Of Hope’, alongside a brand new single featuring Pa Salieu. Listen to ‘Only Love’ below.
The London jazz outfit will release the follow up to 2024’s ‘Dance, No One’s Watching’ on September 18 through Partisan. Pre-orders and pre-saves are available now.
According to a press release, the forthcoming 17 track collection is described as an “expansive, emotional and deeply rhythmic” body of work. The album includes spoken word passages from BAFTA-winning actor Letitia Wright and guest appearances from Lila Iké, Leona Lewis and Libianca.
With ‘Here Because Of Hope’, Ezra Collective continue to explore new creative territory while staying connected to the sense of community, spirituality and shared energy that has been central to the band since the beginning.
The uplifting new single ‘Only Love’ marks the first collaboration between the group and Pa Salieu, with both artists drawing from themes of diasporic identity, rhythm and storytelling throughout their work.
The track is built around grooves inspired by West African music, blending rich horn arrangements with deeply personal lyrics from Salieu. Together, the song finds strength and beauty in themes of perseverance, joy and survival.
Bandleader Femi Koleoso explained: “Pa Salieu has been a musician that we have long admired in Ezra Collective. Not just because of his incredible lyricism and storytelling but also his ability to weave in his Gambian heritage and roots into such a distinctly UK sound.
“In 2024, we had the beautiful moment playing at Wembley Arena, looking out into the crowd and seeing Pa Salieu dancing and partying with his friends and in that moment, I had the very thought we need to make a song together for this kind of setting.
“I spent some time studying West African music, studying Gambian music, and let that influence the bassline of this track and the drumbeat.”
He continued: “We linked up with Pa in Wood Green and immediately his stories started to flow. He came with a bunch of lyrics that he had from a really hard time he went through, but in those lyrics were so many stories of pain but also beauty, joy and love, and we were trying to find that beautiful place in the middle of those two things, and that’s how we came about this song.”
Speaking about the album as a whole, Ezra Collective described ‘Here Because Of Hope’ as something deeply meaningful and uplifting.
“It feels like our first records were really Ezra Collective as children; this one really feels like Ezra Collective as adults,” they explained.
“There’s been so many moments of joy, so many moments of excitement, but at the same time, it’s impossible not to look at the world and feel deep pain and sadness, and we were really determined to write an album that still sees the prominent importance and final destination being joy, but also recognises the pain and the momentary difficulties that people are facing.
They added: “This album is the journey from that pain to joy, and the connective word in the middle is hope. We hope that this album makes people dance, we hope it makes people cry. There are stories woven into every single fabric of the record, and those stories [are] most eloquently put by five adults that met as children.”
The tracklist for Ezra Collective’s ‘Here Because Of Hope’ is:
Ezra Collective and Salieu debuted ‘Only Love’ live while headlining the New Music Stage at Radio 1’s Big Weekend last week. The band will spend much of the summer performing at festivals across the UK and Europe, including an appearance at Lost Village in Lincolnshire.
The Mercury Prize and BRIT Award-winning group also featured on this year’s star-studded ‘Help(2)’ charity album in support of War Child.
Speaking with NME at last year’s BRIT Awards, where the group won Group Of The Year, Koleoso reflected on the lasting impact of inspiring young people through music. “If someone is here because Ezra Collective went into their school and inspired them, then we will last forever. So will they, if they do the same. That is the way we think about everything.”
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Paris Jackson says she shares a deeply personal and “beautiful” bond with her late father Michael Jackson, but no longer feels the need to publicly discuss it.
During an appearance on the Trying Not to Die podcast with Jack Osbourne on Tuesday, the singer and actress opened up about how her perspective on privacy has changed over the years since Michael’s death in 2009.
“There's definitely a certain element where I felt I had to share everything,” Paris explained. “And that has drastically changed in the last few years, because I don't really feel like any of us owe anyone anything.”
She went on to say that she no longer feels pressured to publicly express her love for her father in ways that people may expect, such as posting tributes on social media for his birthday or death anniversary.
“I'm now learning I can have my own personal relationship, and I'm allowed to be private about it and I'm now like, my relationship is the most beautiful relationship ever,” the 28 year old shared. “I'm in a very beautiful spot with my dad and I love that and it's no one's business and I don't have to share that with anybody. And there's a lot of freedom in that, which is really cool.”
Elsewhere in the conversation, Paris spoke about the values Michael instilled in her and her brothers, Prince, 29, and Bigi, 24, especially when it came to work ethic and responsibility.
“There was a lot about my upbringing that was silver spoon esque, but there was so much of it that had to be earned. Like there was very much a focus on developing a work ethic,” she said. “And so, I did see something recently where it's like, ‘You don't have to work,’ and it's like no, I do. I really do. Because I'm like a shark; if I stop moving, I'll die. It makes me happy to move and work and be productive. I need it for my wellbeing.”
Paris recently released her latest music project, Teenage Drama, earlier this month.
Her famous family has also remained in the spotlight following the release of the biographical film Michael, which stars her cousin Jaafar Jackson as the King of Pop. Paris had previously distanced herself from the project.
The musical biopic has become the second highest grossing movie of the year so far.
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