Nikki Glaspie's all-pro funk tribute KAMANI will come together for a trio of Colorado dates in December, the band announces today. The fluid collective is set to perform Dec. 16 in Vail at Shakedown Bar, Dec. 17 in Nederland at the Caribou Room and Dec. 18 in Denver at Cervantes. Their explosive live show pays homage to the masters of funk music – The Gap Band, James Brown, The Meters, Prince and more – as performed by musicians who've studied under many of the masters themselves.
KAMANI's lineup features drummer and vocalist Glaspie (Beyonce, Dumpstahunk, Maceo Parker, The Nth Power), drummer and percussionist Sput Searight (Ghost-Note, Snarky Puppy, TOTO), guitarist Kat Dyson (Prince), keyboardist Xavier Taplin (Ghost-Note) and bassist Matt Lapham (Roosevelt Collier, Shak Nasti).
On a mission to “heal America with the funk,” the group's tribute set delivers deep cuts and reimagined classics from artists like The Gap Band, Prince and James Brown – and showcases arguably the most compelling rhythmic pairing of the year in Glaspie and Searight.
“We play the funk a bit differently because we’ve played with the masters. We’re taking that knowledge and keeping it alive,” said Glaspie. “I’m a purist when it comes to funk music. There’s no water in this – it’s real, unfiltered, uncut, unadulterated funk."
KAMANI is a pandemic project that came together in fall 2020 in Glaspie's current city of Austin, Texas and first performed for a six-night run in Winter Park, Florida the following month. “I have never heard a set of music that moved me more,” said reviewer Scott Hopkins for MusicFestNews following their first live shows. “The outpouring of love going from band to audience and back was palpable all evening.”
The group's core trio features Glaspie, Dyson and Lapham with a rotating lineup of players that often features Searight and Taplin, but has also included Shaun Martin and Nigel Hall. After a series of spring and summer 2021 tour dates and October 2021 festival performances at Hangtown Music Festival and Suwannee Hulaween, KAMANI is set to finish their year in the Rockies with a bang.
Tickets and more info at nikkiglaspie.com/kamani.
KAMANI Tour Dates
Dec. 16 – Vail, Colorado – Shakedown Bar
Dec. 17 – Nederland, Colorado – Caribou Room
Dec. 18 – Denver, Colorado – Cervantes
