Bob Collymore Jazz Festival announces artist line-up for Feb 2025 event

Following a competitive auditions process held in late 2024, the Festival will feature the Kaima Mwiti Quintet as well as Judah and the Tribe, a dynamic 9-piece Afro Jazz Band.

"Our ambition is to ensure that we continue to create a sustainable platform to showcase great jazz talent. Our auditions process attracted several new acts that prove that our ecosystem continues to grow as it supports the Kenyan creative economy," said Wambui Collymore, the Festival Director.

The two Kenyan acts are set to join a roster of international performers from Germany, Mozambique and Barbados who shall be announced shortly, added Ms. Collymore.

All artistes will be supported by the youth orchestra Ghetto Classics as well as famed DJ D-lite.

Kaima Mwiti is a talented jazz pianist whose journey has been marked by dedication, creativity and a deep passion for the jazz genre.

He considers Kenya as the fabric of his creativity, forming music that reflects that rich history and cultural depth of the country.

Kaima and his quintet have shared stages with artistes such as Jonthan Butler, Jacob Asiyo and the quintet's front-man is currently the co-host of the Capital FM Jazz Club.

On their part, Judah and the Tribe are an 8 to 9-piece Afro jazz band based in Nairobi, led by trumpeter and flugelhornist Judah Onesimus.

The band was founded around early 2021 by a group of music students at Kenyatta University as a permutation of the students' band under Judah's leadership. 

The band members are prolific composers and arrangers, recording artists and bandleaders and music directors in their own right. The band endeavors to create a memorable and authentic musical experience, extensively exploring Kenyan rhythmic palettes and grooves in their music.

They have shared stages with artistes such as Jonthan Butler, Jacob Asiyo and the quintet's front-man is currently the co-host of the Capital FM Jazz Club.

On their part, Judah and the Tribe are an 8 to 9-piece Afro jazz band based in Nairobi, led by trumpeter and flugelhornist Judah Onesimus. The band was founded around early 2021 by a group of music students at Kenyatta University as a permutation of the students' band under Judah's leadership.

The band members are prolific composers and arrangers, recording artists and bandleaders and music directors in their own right. The band endeavors to create a memorable and authentic musical experience, extensively exploring Kenyan rhythmic palettes and grooves in their music.

Proceeds from East Africa's largest Jazz Festival go towards facilitating music education for youth in Kenya through organisations such as the Ghetto Classics programme.

Specifically, the proceeds provide young adults with access to artistic expression and education which they are unable to access through traditional education systems.

Tickets are already on sale for the highly anticipated event which will take place at the Carnivore Grounds on 15th February 2025.

Previous editions of the BCIJF have brought together international and regional jazz stars through sold-out, crowd-pleasing and family focused experiences that highlight the power of music in connecting societies across East Africa through music.