Mercury Prize and BRIT Award-winning Ezra Collective have made history with their fourth studio album, “Here Because of Hope,” becoming the first UK male jazz group ever to earn an Official Charts Number 1 studio album. The landmark release also tops this week’s Official Vinyl Albums Chart, having shifted more copies on vinyl than any other album over the past seven days.
[LISTEN TO “HERE BECAUSE OF HOPE” HERE]
The news follows the band’s sold-out underplay at London’s Roundhouse last Wednesday, hailed by The Observer, who declared: “Ezra Collective play every tune like an ecstatic encore, whipping the seated sections of London’s Roundhouse to their feet from the off”. The band were joined by a slew of special guests throughout the night, including Pa Salieu, Lila Iké, JME and Kinetika Bloco to name just a few.
The release comes ahead of Ezra Collective’s biggest global headline tour to date, spanning Australia, Asia, North America, Europe and the UK. Its UK climax will see the band play an extraordinary four sold-out nights at London’s O2 Academy Brixton, following previous sold-out headline performances at Wembley Arena and the Royal Albert Hall.
“Here Because of Hope” opens the latest chapter in an extraordinary decade for Ezra Collective. After becoming the first jazz act to win the Mercury Prize and subsequently winning the BRIT Award for Group of the Year, the band have emerged as one of the defining British groups of their generation.
Their rise has taken them from London’s grassroots jazz community to major stages around the world, with performances at Glastonbury, Central Park SummerStage and Sydney Opera House, alongside headline shows at Wembley Arena, the Royal Albert Hall and New York’s Blue Note Jazz Club.
Joy, freedom, community and possibility sit at the heart of “Here Because of Hope”, an album rooted in where Ezra Collective have come from, the people and musical traditions that shaped them, and the hope that continues to carry them forward.
EZRA COLLECTIVE LIVE DATES
30 SEP / Perth, AU / Astor Theatre
02 OCT / Brisbane, AU / Tivoli Theatre
03 OCT / Sydney, AU / Move My Way SYD
04 OCT / Melbourne, AU / Move My Way MEL
08 OCT / Seoul, KR / YES24 Livehall
10 OCT / Singapore, SG / Formula 1 Grand Prix
13 OCT / Tokyo, JP / Toyosu Pit
12 NOV / San Francisco, CA / Bimbo’s 365 Club – SOLD OUT
16 NOV / Toronto, ON / Concert Hall
18 NOV / New York, NY / Webster Hall – SOLD OUT
19 NOV / Montréal, QC / Théâtre Beanfield
13 FEB / Berlin, DE / Columbiahalle
16 FEB / Brussels, BE / Ancienne Belgique — SOLD OUT
17 FEB / Brussels, BE / Ancienne Belgique — SOLD OUT
19 FEB / Cologne, DE / Carlswerk
20 FEB / Amsterdam, NL / AFAS Live
23 FEB / Lyon, FR / Le Transbordeur
24 FEB / Paris, FR / Zénith
26 FEB / Bristol, UK / The Prospect Building – SOLD OUT
27 FEB / Bristol, UK / The Prospect Building – SOLD OUT
28 FEB / Bristol, UK / The Prospect Building – SOLD OUT
03 MAR / Nottingham, UK / Rock City – SOLD OUT
05 MAR / Dublin, IE / 3Olympia Theatre
06 MAR / Dublin, IE / 3Olympia Theatre
08 MAR / Glasgow, UK / O2 Academy
10 MAR / Edinburgh, UK / Usher Hall
12 MAR / Manchester, UK / Warehouse, Aviva Studios – SOLD OUT
13 MAR / Manchester, UK / Warehouse, Aviva Studios
14 MAR / Birmingham, UK / O2 Academy
18 MAR / London, UK / O2 Academy Brixton — SOLD OUT
19 MAR / London, UK / O2 Academy Brixton — SOLD OUT
20 MAR / London, UK / O2 Academy Brixton – SOLD OUT
21 MAR / London, UK / O2 Academy Brixton – SOLD OUT
Pop Scoop founder and editor. Ex showbiz/tech editor at the Cyprus Mail. Former sub-editor at Archant. Former art director Sky TV. Co-founder of Kool Magazine and freelanced for the BBC, Channel 4, Warner Bros and the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation.
