Brandee Younger sat down with Good Morning America to debate her new album Brand New Life and the unparalleled legacy of trailblazing jazz harpist Dorothy Ashby. Watch the clip right here.
Younger appeared alongside Pete Rock to debate the lasting affect of Ashby’s music throughout hip-hop and R&B, and the way Brand New Life (out April 7 by way of Impulse! Records) celebrates Ashby’s groundbreaking work.
A pioneer of the style who’s credited with redefining the harp’s position in modern music, Dorothy Ashby has influenced hip-hop, jazz, and R&B musicians for many years, from Stevie Wonder to Jay-Z. Younger, a history-making composer herself in a style that has remained largely male-dominated, continues Ashby’s legacy on Brand New Life, using the instrument to bridge genres and many years.
Younger most lately launched the album’s R&B and neo-soul inflected title observe, “Brand New Life,” a collaboration with Grammy-nominated singer Mumu Fresh. Brand New Life combines authentic works from Younger, reinterpretations of Ashby’s work, and previously-unrecorded compositions by Ashby; the album additionally consists of options by Pete Rock, ninth Wonder, and Meshell N’degeocello, alongside manufacturing by Makaya McCraven.
“Creating this album has been a longtime dream of mine,” says Younger. “I really had a lot of living to do before being able to execute it, genuinely. The finished product is truly representative of where I am now and it is an honor to convey that through the compositions of one of my heroes.”
Celebrated because the premier harpist of her era, Brandee Younger has damaged new floor for harpists over the whole lot of her profession. Younger made historical past as the primary Black feminine solo artist to be Grammy-nominated for Best Instrumental Composition, for “Beautiful is Black” from her genre-busting 2021 major-label debut album, Somewhere Different.
That similar yr the album additionally garnered an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Jazz Album – Instrumental. Along with the discharge of Brand New Life, Younger shall be embarking on a collection of headlining exhibits throughout the U.S. this spring, and can comply with her whirlwind 2023 with a residency as SFJazz’s Resident Artistic Director in early 2024.