Jazz artist YahZarah. Image: courtesy YahZarah.
Baby, it’s cold outside. Gloves, hats and double scarves weather, for sure. Better to just stay in with a cup of hot cocoa and some incredible music on rotation. While you’re curled up on the couch, cuddled under blankets and keeping everything under cover, here are five contemporary Black female jazz artists’ albums that will keep you warm and toasty, even when the weather dips below the freezing point.
Samara Joy
Linger Awhile
Conjuring up the greats like Billy Holliday and Ella Fitzgerald, Samara Joy puts a new spin on music from decades past. Her debut EP from Verve Records includes the a smoky, soulful version of the 1926 George Gershwin ballad, “Someone to Watch Over Me.”
Price: $14
Brandee Younger
Soul Awakening
You’ve never heard a harpist play like this! Inspired by her idols, Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane, Younger infuses classical, jazz, soul and funk into her performances on this percussionist instrument, for a heavenly sound blended with horns and drums.
Price: $19
YahZarah
The Ceremony
Love is at the heart of YahZarah’s music: searching for it, tryng to keep it, losing it and starting the search all over again. Filling the beats with emotional waves, it’s 12 impassioned tracks to take you through every stage of a relationship.
Price: $10
Melanie Charles
Y’all Don’t Really Care About Black Women
Melanie Charles’ rumbling voice is perfectly in tune with her music: her songs touch upon issues such as social economic disparity, the pay gap and Mother Africa, all set to a deep, pumping bass beat. Don’t be surprised if you hear lighter notes infused throughout—Charles is also an accomplished flutist.
Price: $14
China Moses
China Moses & the Vibe Tribe
The daughter of jazz singer Dee Dee Bridgewater keeps the legacy alive. Performing since age 18, the singer’s signature husky voice declares to get away from an additctively toxic relationship over a four track EP featuring Neil Charles, Luigi Grasso, Marijus Aleksa and Ashley Henry.