Nubya Garcia

In the organizer's words:

Nubya Garcia is not an artist who is easy to categorize. Is it jazz? Sure, the London-born saxophonist, composer and bandleader grew up studying the genre under renowned pianist Nikki Yeoh at Camden Music. But it's only when you listen to albums like 2020's Source and 2024's Odyssey that you realize the broader creativity that shines through: it's jazz, classical, dub, R&B and whatever else Garcia wants to convey. It all comes from a space of exploration and self-study, from a desire to do everything in all disciplines while ignoring arbitrary pigeonholes that don't fit.

Garcia's second album Odyssey, to be released on Concord Jazz in September 2024, is a majestic work in which she mixes orchestral arrangements with R&B, jazz, broken beat and dub. The result is a grandiose, nuanced record that feels airy and celestial without sacrificing the groove. It's a deeply personal work about her journey of finding her way back to a love of musical composition over the past four years.

Source, her 2020 debut album, was released on Concord Jazz and garnered critical acclaim, including an NPR Tiny Desk (Home) Concert, a Pitchfork "Best New Music" review and an "Album of the Month" mention in Rolling Stone. In a profile, The New York Times called Source "a wide-ranging jazz set with Afro-Caribbean influences that bundles a lifetime of experiences into an hour-long listening session." Following its release, the album entered the top 30 in the UK charts and she was one of three artists to perform live at Glastonbury's 2020 Experience, which was broadcast on the BBC to thousands of viewers. Source was also nominated for the Mercury Prize, a prestigious award for the best albums from the UK or Ireland.

In 2022, Garcia toured the US in support of Khruangbin, performing to sold-out venues such as Radio City Music Hall in New York, the Ryman in Nashville and the Met in Philadelphia. She then went on to tour the UK and US on her own and performed at various festivals including Glastonbury, Love Supreme, Pickathon and Newport Jazz.

Garcia continues to tour worldwide and also works with major brands such as Lululemon, Paul Smith, Labrum, Nicholas Daley and Burberry. She was one of three creatives selected for Fossil's "Moment In Time" campaign, which was published worldwide in VOGUE, GQ and GLAMOUR magazines. Garcia has also been featured in numerous print publications including Mojo, Vogue and Ebony.

As a composer, Garcia's original music has been featured on Apple TV (Ted Lasso), the OWN Network (Cherish The Day), FX TV (Atlanta), EPIC GAMES (Fortnite), and several podcasts (including the theme song for Anika Noni Rose's Clio Award-winning podcast Being Seen).