The big weekend has finally arrived for jazz enthusiasts, and the Cape Town International Jazz Festival is set to serve another successful weekend of soulful music.
Amanda Black, Incognito founder Jean-Paul 'Bluey' Maunick and Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews were some of the artists at the press conference on Friday morning at the Cape Sun Hotel.
‘Amazulu’ singer Amanda Black is known for always bringing her heritage into her music as a Xhosa woman and spoke about why it is an important part of her brand.
READ: #CTIJF2018 - What you need to know
“I’m myself. I don’t have to practice it. I don't have to think about it. [The traditional makeup] I wear came way before it was apart of my brand. I don’t have to do anything, it’s in me. I am myself, it is not act.This is me”
Hailing from New Orleans, Andrews shared where his gets his inspiration from saying:
“I feel like we should all be influenced by everything but not necessarily be a copy. I try to take all those components of all the music that I heard and some the music that I was apart of. And music that’s being created on the street and the club in New Orleans and put my different influences on it. “
The legendary jazz collective Incognito has been around for 40 plus years, and Maunick explained how it's been able to keep their sound, despite having a constant change in its members.
“If you put yourself out as a music collective, it was never meant to be a band. It was meant to be the UK’s first jazz, funk soul collective. It’s my baby but the idea is that it’s not me it’s always more people. That's why I chose the name Incognito. We’re in disguise, we come at you in various forms. And you never know what you’re gonna get. ”
The Cape Town International Jazz is taking place this weekend and the Cape Town International Convention Centre with day passes available at Computicket at R750.
Watch press conference highlights below: