Ezra Collective
2023 was a landmark year for Ezra Collective. In addition to becoming the first ever Jazz act to win the Mercury Prize in its 31-year history for their critically-acclaimed album ‘Where I’m Meant To Be’, they sold out their entire UK/EU/US tour (including 10,000 tickets at both their Hammersmith & Royal Albert Hall headlines), won Best Jazz Act at last year’s MOBO Awards, held one of the most revered sets at Glastonbury, performed at Quincy Jones’ star-studded birthday party, were named Time Out’s Londoners of 2023 and closed out the year as the final guests of 2023 on The Graham Norton Show & Top of the Pops Review of 2023.
Kicking off 2024 in a similar fashion, they were tapped by Daniel Lee to perform at his Burberry x Harrods takeover and launched the British Library’s upcoming Beyond the Bassline: 500 Years of Black British music exhibition on May 11th and recently covered ES Magazine, featured in British Vogue, and cover stars of this month’s Music Week and Mixmag.
Dance, No One's Watching is an ode to the sacred, yet joyous act of dancing, an album thatmusically guides you through a night out in the city, from the opening of possibilities as a new evening spans out ahead, to dawn’s final hours as the night comes to a close. Written during a blistering 2023 which saw Ezra Collective tour the world, and become the first jazz act to win the Mercury Prize, Dance, No One's Watching is a documentation of the many dance floors they encountered. From London to Chicago, Lagos to Australia, dance and rhythm connect us. These songs are a testament to that spirit. Since its release in 2024, Ezra Collective have continued to break down barriers for UK Jazz. They are the first UK Jazz band to win a BRIT Award (‘Group of the Year’), having been nominated for four awards, have a top 10 album in the UK, be playlisted on BBC Radio 1 & 1Xtra, perform on Live Lounge and be nominated for the BBC Sound Of poll. Dance, No One's Watching is a record that speaks to the unifying power of dance. It is a powerful and distinctive addition to a catalogue that continues to blaze a bold new trail in contemporary British music.