Moor Mother: Jazz Codes

Camae Ayewa spent years performing in Philadelphia's underground music community before moving to L.A. She released her debut album as Moor Mother Fetish Bones in 2016 and has since put out an abundance of acclaimed music, both as a solo artist and in collaboration with other musicians, including the free jazz groups Irreversible Entanglements and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.  

Released last July, Jazz Codes is Moor Mother's second album for record label Anti-. Sprung from a book of poems she wrote in honour of jazz and blues icons, and using free jazz as a starting point, Jazz Codes took on its own life during collaborations with Swedish producer Olof Melander and a roster of sought out singers introduced to accompany her raps and spoken word. Melodies sprouted around the poems and the songs bloomed to reveal an album rich in complexity.