Nu-Jazz | Broken Beat 3 Items

Ladi6 is a singer with soul. A singer with a hip-hop background and masses of pop-appeal. A singer who first gained attention through her features with the legendary New Zealand export-band Fat Freddy's Drop, but who has also performed alongside such diverse artists as Gil Scott-Heron, Mayer Hawthorne and Mos Def. In short: A singer whose eyes have seen much and whose style is not governed by rules. As if that wasn't enough, her enormous charisma enables her to win her audience over within minutes with full support of her band of Parks and Julien Dyne (BBE).
The 30-year old has always endeavored to use music to tear down barriers and dissolve purported genre-boundaries. With her previous album, "Time Is Not Much" (BBE) which was produced by Parks and Mu (Fat Freddy's Drop), Ladi6 has already taken a perfect shot at her goal, which, combined with the interplay between the many diverse elements of the music, has a highly impressive effect. "The Liberation Of…" has already top the New Zealand independent charts for consecutive weeks and her single "Like Water" is the #1 independent New Zealand song on radio.

Ladi6, a New Zealander of Samoan origin, feels a deep connection to her homeland. And her homeland has suffered some tragic events in recent years: One and a half years ago, the South Sea paradise of Samoa was stuck by a Tsunami. Ladi6, whose real name is Karoline Tamati, was present when the wave of destruction arrived. A few weeks ago an earthquake, measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale, devastated the New Zealand city of Christchurch - the town in which her family lives. Again, Karoline bore witness to a natural catastrophe inflicting deep wounds on the soul of a population.

All the more surprising then, that 'The Liberation Of…' doesn't for one moment sound burdened or melancholy. Quite the contrary, in fact: It is an easygoing, feel-good album. The title of the record, however, suggests both the aim of the songs and the result, which their creation has achieved. For the album is exactly that, which its title suggests: Liberation.