Tomorrow’s Warriors’ celebrate 30th anniversary with big return to live music

Tomorrow’s Warriors, the trail-blazing jazz talent development organisation, creative producers, music educators and charity celebrate their 30th anniversary this year with an ambitious programme of live performances and special events taking place in the coming months.

These launch on 30 April – International Jazz Day – as the organisation reveals its busy programme of live performances from May 2021 onwards. Ahead of these the livestreamed edition of Cheltenham Jazz Festival on 1 and 2 May will feature online concerts from Xvngo – pioneering young saxophonist and producer who’s spearheading the ‘jazz drill’ and ‘post-trap’ genres - and fellow fast-rising saxophonist Maddy Coombs. These will be filmed and streamed from south London venue The Albany, with three fortnightly digital showcases taking place from 9 May onward and monthly physical gigs from 20 June. Further Albany shows include Berklee-trained drummer Romarna Campbell (9 May) and London-based vocalist and songwriter Loucin (23 May), with more names to be announced soon. Larger scale events include the Nu Civilisation Orchestra who present ‘Parallel – A Tribute to Joe Harriott’ at London Unwrapped at Kings Place on 4 July featuring altoist Nathaniel Facey and bandleader/pianist Peter Edwards, while the Jazz Jamaica Allstars: The Trojan Story – Summer Reunion takes place at the Royal Festival Hall on 18 July. All of these events are supported by Arts Council England Cultural Recovery Fund and PRS Foundation.

Tomorrow’s Warriors co-founder and Artistic Director Gary Crosby OBE said “What a journey it’s been the past 30 years. What was a leap of faith, has become a force for good and I couldn’t be more proud of our Warriors past and present. The past year has been a huge challenge for Tomorrow’s Warriors, we survived and now we are ready to thrive again, as we return to doing what we do best, live music! I’m really looking forward to playing with Jazz Jamaica All Stars and our tribute to Joe Harriot will be something truly special, also our new Albany series is going to showcase the best of our next generation coming through. Watch this space for an announcement soon of a musical celebration of 50 years of Marvin Gaye’s classic album What’s Going On’, and new #IAMWARRIOR commissions. Our 30th anniversary year has so much more in store.”

Tomorrow’s Warriors, co-founder and CEO Janine Irons MBE added “It’s a great day not only to announce some of our 30th anniversary activities, but also the resumption of our highly anticipated live events programme. It has been wonderful seeing multiple generations of Warriors musicians grow and develop over the years. The artistic journey that our Learning Programme provides supports our musicians into sustainable careers, acting as a beacon for successive generations. The journey simply didn’t exist 30 years ago and we are so grateful to our friends, funders and supporters, without whom none of this would be possible. With extra special thanks to Arts Council’s Cultural Recovery Fund, PRS Foundation and our partners at Southbank Centre, the Albany and Kings Place. We will soon also announce the Tomorrow’s Warriors podcast, storytelling and contextualising our legacy into the future, and much more.”

See the July issue of Jazzwise for an in-depth interview with Tomorrow’s Warriors and for more info visit tomorrowswarriors.org/