Features
Mama Knows Best
The tour kicks off August 11 at the Newport Jazz Festival in Rhode Island and includes stops at festivals and theatres around the country, including the Central Park Summerstage in New York (August 12), KCRW’s World Festival at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles (August 26), the Aladdin Theatre in Portland, Ore. (September 1), the Austin City Limits Festival in Texas (September 15) and the Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans (October 28).
Additional dates for the tour are in the works.
Supermoon, which is due for release August 7, is Zap Mama’s sixth album. Vocalist and group founder Marie Daulne explained the album’s title refers to “a culture obsessed with superstars and idols.”
“It seems rather foolish for people to look up to figures who are not very good examples of how to live your life,” Daulne said. “They identify themselves through a media image, a certain kind of look, a certain kind of artificial personality. I say let’s be ourselves, and let’s create a word for what it means to be ourselves.”
Daulne also said the album – which blends world music, soul, pop and jazz – might be her most personal project to date.
“With Supermoon, I reveal the way I chose to live when I started my career. It’s very intimate, beginning with my choice of the picture on the cover of the album.”You’re seeing me very close up. I hope that’s a kind of intimacy that people will understand. I’m opening a door to who I am, and revealing myself for all to see.”
The album includes an all-star lineup of guest appearances by musicians from around the globe, including drummer Tony Allen; bassists Meshell Ndegeocello and Will Lee; guitarists David Gilmour and Michael Franti; pianists Leon Pendarvis, Daniel Freiberg and Robbie Kondor; percussionist Bashiri Johnson and many more.