Jae Franklin w/ Samvel Gasparyan Having shared the stage with Grammy Award winning Melanie Fiona as a vocal accompanist (2011 BET ‘Music Matters’ tour), Houston, TX, native Jae Franklin is quickly capturing the attention of music lovers and tastemakers alike. The effortless blend of soul, jazz, and Afrobeat on her debut album, Always Needed You, has garnered praise from esteemed websites and blogs including Blind I for the Kids, Urb, and SoulBounce among many others. Jae draws artistic cues from Amel Larrieux, Sarah Vaughan, Fela Kuti, and Sade, making for a classic songstress with modern flair, pushing boundaries while remaining totally accessible. Jae’s music, while never preachy, aims to unite – a result of recent revelations while traveling the world from Ethiopia, to Atlanta, to her current residence in Abu Dhabi. Having already worked with the likes of Grammy award-winning songwriter/producer Bryan Michael Cox (Mariah Carey, Usher), composer Louis St. Louis (of the timeless musical Grease), as well as a host of talented musicians, Jae Franklin seeks to continue her rise to success in 2014. While continuing to push her personal boundaries and delve deeper into the inner workings of the world, her forthcoming single “Love is Not Hard” (from the anticipated release of her next EP Universal Language: Prelude 3), is sure to solidify Jae Franklin as not only a talented vocalist and songwriter, but as a certified soldier of love. Samvel Gasparyan is an award winning pianist (Special Prize at Montreux Jazz Piano Competition 2011, Semifinalist at Nottingham Jazz Piano Competition 2010 Best compilation albums of the year at Armenian Music Award 2000, 2001) whos keen skill and love for jazz has seen him perform alongside some of the greats from the music world such as Arto Tuncboyaciyan, Samvel Yervinyan & Loise Mandrell. From having worked as a principle co-arranger in the Armenian State Jazz Big Band to a keyboardist for the Fee Hedrick Family Entertainment Group in Tennessee, USA he now heads up the Jazz Hats, Dubais hottest up & coming jazz outfit who hold a weekly residency at one of the cities most illustrious hotels. (View more bios of our featured poets in the event info section. Stay tuned because more are confirming every day. Event page ---> https://facebook/events/437349126364571/ — with Emer Davis.
Posted on: Sun, 26 Jan 2014 16:29:48 +0000