Shabaka Hutchings

Shabaka Hutchings was born in 1984 in London. He moved to Barbados at the age of six, began studying classical clarinet aged nine, graduating to tenor saxophone which has been a regular sight across London and the UK since his return aged sixteen. As part of the Caribbean diaspora, he sees his role as that of pushing the boundaries of what musical elements are considered to be Caribbean. With his three critically acclaimed bands – Sons of Kemet, The Comet Is Coming and Shabaka and the Ancestors – Hutchings proposes different interpretations of jazz, Caribbean and African music, transcended by a spiritual, cosmic or political scope. Signed to the iconic Impulse! label, Hutchings has released eight studio albums and three EPs to date. He performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 2017 with his band Shabaka and the Ancestors.