Today, acclaimed Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist, Georgia Anne Muldrow, who NPR describes as an “R&B and astral-funk polymath” shares a new song from Mama, You Can Bet!, the third album from her solo-jazz project, Jyoti.
The title track from Mama, You Can Bet! is now available as a single, ahead of the album’s August 28 release via eOne and Muldrow’s own, SomeOthaShip Connect. The song is dedicated to her mother, Rickie Byars, who has a long musical history in jazz and spiritual music (Pharoah Sanders Ensemble, Sir Roland Hanna’s New York Jazz Quartet, and founder of the Agape International Choir). The song opens the album with an inspirational and encouraging tone, as emphatic piano and percussion introduce a choral layering of Georgia’s voice chanting “Hey, Mama,” before a singular Georgia sings: “Mama, You Can Bet/There’s Many a Man/Who’d Love Your Hand.” As Georgia puts it “I wanted my mother to know that she deserves passionate love, that I see her as a beautiful woman.” The song is a moving testament to Georgia’s respect and admiration for her mother beyond her role as a maternal figure.
The Mama, You Can Bet! single follows Orgone, which was released in June and praised byCool Hunting who called it “a minimal but stirring tune, with meandering piano and free-flowing vocals that trace the topic of displacement,” while Brooklyn Vegan proclaimed the song to be “a soaring dose of jazz-soul.” The May album announcement was accompanied by the release of lead single, This Walk, which also features Muldrow’s singing voice, along with wistful piano and harp. As Muldrow puts it, the song acknowledges how “violence can both ignite and snuff out a voice.” Essence called This Walk “a timely song from a timeless artist,” and added, “This Walk is a ballad that speaks to feelings of people across the country” while Okayplayer called the song “a yearning and politically-charged ballad,” andWBGO said, “This is music for our troubled moment, restless but determined.” The single’s b-side, The Cowrie Waltz, pits a loungey jazz sound with shredding guitar, echoing in the background to form a groovy and bombastic juxtaposition. This Walk b/w The Cowrie Waltzis available now digitally and a 7” single version can be pre-ordered now through Bandcamphere.
Georgia recently performed versions of This Walk, and Orgone ,and took part in an extensive interview for the new VICE NEWS series, Receiver, which streamed live and aired on VICE TV. She also spoke with DownBeat for a feature available to read here. A beautifully animated lyric video for This Walk created by Charles Sicuso with Muldrow’s own illustrations is available to view here. Pre-Order Mama, You Can Bet!, the album, here.
Mama, You Can Bet! comes after two previous Jyoti records, Denderah and Ocotea, the latter taking home the Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Award for Best Jazz Album. Unlike these earlier Jyoti records, Mama, You Can Bet! contains tracks with vocals from Muldrow, including the newly released singles, This Walk and Orgone. The album’s only guest musician is Georgia’s long-time friend and acclaimed saxophonist, Lakecia Benjamin (on Ra’s Noise). The album also features two Charlie Mingus compositions that Georgia remixed for the album, Bemoanable Lady Geemix, and Fabus Foo Geemix, both commissioned by Jason Moran and The Kennedy Center in 2017, a project that manifested into a live performance entitled Muldrow Meets Mingus that was held at both The Kennedy Center and Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2017, which recently re-aired on NPR, who also recently featured Muldrow on Play It Forward, a new special segment series on All Things Considered, listen here.
About Jyoti/Georgia Anne Muldrow
Georgia Anne Muldrow not only creates jazz music – she’s lived it since birth. Her father, Ronald Muldrow, played alongside Eddie Harris while her mother, Rickie Byars, performed as lead singer of Roland Hanna’s New York Jazz Quartet and Pharoah Sanders Ensemble. Following in her parents’ footsteps, she has collaborated with famed musicians including Robert Glasper, Adrian Younge, Ambrose Akinmursire, Justin Brown’s Nyeusi, and Keyon Harrold. Jyoti is a name bestowed upon her by the late great Alice Coltrane.
The newest Jyoti music arrives after many monumental years for Muldrow. Her most recent solo album Overload – released on Flying Lotus’ label Brainfeeder – earned her a 2020 Grammy nomination and landed on year-end lists for Pitchfork, Bandcamp, and The A.V. Club. 2019 saw Georgia perform at numerous Jazz Festivals around the globe: Nublu Jazz Festival (Brazil), Portland Jazz Festival (Portland, US), Bric Festival (Brooklyn, US), Blue Note Tokyo (Japan), New York Winter Jazz Festival and the DC Jazz Festival to name a few.
Photo by Priscilla Jimenez
