Adrian Younge

Multi-instrumentalist/composer Adrian Younge synthesizes styles across the spectrum of Black music with a crate-digger's ear. He scored 2009's blaxploitation homage Black Dynamite and released conceptual solo projects ranging from the psychedelic pop-soul Something About April (2011) to synthesizer experimentation on The Electronique Void (2016). Concurrent sessions yielded albums headlined by major influences like the Delfonics and Ghostface Killah. Ali Shaheed Muhammad became Younge's constant collaborator. They worked together on 2018's The Midnight Hour and inaugurated the Jazz Is Dead label, studios, and album series -- featuring a fertile series of collaborative works with legendary artists -- in 2020. The pair's third JID series began in 2024, taking listeners through Ghanaian funk and Brazilian MPB, soul, and samba. The preview anthology JID 021 arrived that October, followed by Adrian Younge Presents Linear Labs: São Paulo in November and JID 022, featuring African guitar legend Ebo Taylor, in January 2025.