Somi
Last Show: Tuesday 11 th April 2017
PizzaExpress Jazz Club (Soho)
Born to parents from Rwanda and Uganda, vocalist, songwriter and scholar Somi felt at home when she moved to Harlem’s vibrant immigrant community known as 'Little Africa.' ‘Petite Afrique: The Other Black in Harlem’ is a song cycle inspired by the historic uptown neighbourhood, where passers-by can find ornate traditional fabrics, Francophone bibles, palm oil and shea butter, fast-fingered hair braiders, and the city’s best Senegalese fare. Over the past decade, however, gentrification has begun to change the makeup of the neighbourhood and erase its cultural footprints. With this album, Somi hopes to ensure that the stories and struggles of New York City’s largest African community do not disappear untold.