Update: Ezra Collective has officially released their third studio album Dance, No One's Watching. The 19-track project sees the band continue their distinct cross-genre experimentations. Though the album is jazz at its core, it's worlds away from stiff chamber music-style jazz: instead, it's body-moving music that draws from the band's wide variety of influences from Fela Kuti to dub, hip-hop, and calypso, all brought together by strong rhythms, earworm grooves, triumphant horns, and virtuosic soloing. Just like the album's vinyl says on its back cover, Dance, No One's Watching was "written for the dance floor."
The rhythm section of drummer Femi Koleoso and bassist TJ Koleoso provide earworm grooves throughout the project while trumpeter Ife Ogunjobi and tenor saxophonist James Mollison III provide triumphant lead horns and keyboardist Joe Armon-Jones floats along before bursting in with striking staccato solo efforts. Track highlights include the high-energy "Ajala" and the warm vibe of "God Gave Me Feet For Dancing" with Yazmin Lacey — both of which were released as singles — while "Hear My Cry" and "Expensive" are the on-wax debut of tunes that have been staples on Ezra Collective's recent tour. It's not all a party, though, as tunes like "Why I Smile" and "Everybody" are deeply soulful and introspective offerings.
"We live in a world which has become a big performance," reads the band's "statement of freedom" alongside the album. "Whether it's your phone, or in society in general, we have lost the ability to just be ourselves. There's a constant desire for approval from other people. This record is a statement that you can be who you want to be, regardless of what's around you, regardless of what people are saying, because on a deeper level — no one is watching. Don't let the judgment of someone else steal your joy. Focus on being yourself. Who you're called to be. And when you achieve that, that's the moment you will start to experience true joy. See you on the dancefloor. It's where you're meant to be and where we can all feel free."
Stream Dance, No One's Watching now, and head to Ezra Collective's webstore to cop the album on vinyl or CD. Of note is that the album shows as 19 tracks on streaming services, while the vinyl displays 15 tracks — it doesn't count the four interludes as stand-alone songs.
Original Story: Since becoming the first jazz act to win the UK's coveted Mercury Prize in 2023, Ezra Collective's five members have stayed busy — working on individual projects and dropping a single, "Ajala," in April — and now they're back with the announcement of their next studio album. Dubbed Dance, No One's Watching, the project is the group's fourth studio album, and its announcement was accompanied by the release of another new track: the Yazmin Lacey-featuring "God Gave Me Feet For Dancing."
If "Ajala" and "God Gave Me Feet For Dancing" are any indication, Dance, No One's Watching will live up to its name, with heavy dance grooves driven by the band's multitude of influences from jazz to Afrobeat, calypso, hip-hop, reggae and more as well as virtuosic performances from drummer Femi Koleoso, bassist TJ Koleoso, trumpeter Ife Ogunjobi, saxophonist James Mollison III and keyboardist Joe Armon-Jones.
Besides Lacy, features across the 15-track album include Olivia Dean, M.anifest, and Moonchild Sanelly. “No matter how people found us, or what kind of music they like, we just want to give any Ezra Collective listener an injection of good vibrations for their soul,” Femi Koleoso told Hypebeast in an April 2023 interview.
In conjunction with the album announcement and single release, Ezra Collective has revealed full dates for an extensive summer tour that'll kick off in New York City as part of the Big Apple's SummerStage concert series on July 7, then head to Europe and Asia before concluding with a London homecoming concert on November 15 at the OVO Arena Wembley.
Dance, No One's Watching is available for pre-order now, with the first 1,000 vinyl or CD buyers receiving a signed postcard from the group. Watch the "God Gave Me Feet For Dancing" video above, and check out a full track list/tour date lineup below.
01 Intro
02 The Herald
03 Palm Wine
04 God Gave Me Feet for Dancing (ft. Yazmin Lacey)
05 Ajala
06 The Traveller
07 N29
08 No One’s Watching Me (ft. Olivia Dean)
09 Hear My Cry
10 Shaking Body
11 Expensive
12 Streets Is Calling (ft. M.anifest & Moonchild Sanelly)
13 Why I Smile
14 Have Patience
15 Everybody
Click here to view full gallery at Hypebeast
