Zaki Ibrahim – Eclectica (Episodes in Purple)
Normally when I am on the hunt for new music, I never really find anything new. Sure, I find plenty of “new” artists who are all talented…but sound the same. Recently, I had been introduced to Zaki Ibrahim. It was like finding a diamond in the rough. Never before had I heard such a vast range of musical genres blended into one. Her style was original and her sound, extraordinary. This was new music.
Born in Vancouver to Scottish poet mother and African activist father, she began trotting the globe from a very young age. When she was three, her parents moved to Cape Town and then to Paris, Nanaimo, England, Beirut, etc. Thankfully, she has incorporated music from these different cultures into her own sound.
The neo-soul star is making a splash onto the Toronto music scene yet again with her recently released the eight-track EP Eclectica (Episodes in Purple). The 27-year-old beauty’s genre-defying music combines African beats with soul, jazz and R&B to create a unique sound.
Some favourites include “Love-Like”, a rhythm that entrances you with the sound of water instruments the Udu and Rainstick. Next is “Computer Girl” a melody that was created by looping and layering a beat over Ibrahim’s voice. Third on the EP, “You Choose” is a song with a powerful message: you choose to take control of your own life, be brave and enact change. Now for my personal favourite, “Grow Again”, a hip-hop infused anthem followed by a (mostly) acoustic guitar tinged French love song.
This EP is flawless. It is so refreshing to have an artist break the mold of sticking to one genre and one genre only. Ibrahim explores different sounds, rhythms, instruments, etc. During her live shows (which are apparently must-sees), she switches between different instruments, adding and subtracting them to create different beats for her songs. Toronto NEEDS Zaki Ibrahim and soon the rest of the world will too.
Tags: EP
Very nice. Thank you for sharing. I am adding this EP to my shopping cart.