The Originals: Dasan Ahanu & Tai Allen

Sample Sale Music Performers: Dasan Ahanu + Tai Allen, The Holloway Group Band (led by Joel Holloway) #SampleSaleMusic (#SSM). We are a jazz outfit that loves hip-hop. We are a live band of Northerners and Southerners who love the structure of boom bap and the fluidity of improvisation; who love the rigors of jazz but the cadence of a cypher. Since 2014, #SampleSaleMusic (fka The Originals), lead by Dasan Ahanu and Tai Allen, has worked to amplify jazz and hip-hop. The poets and vocalists are children of the latter and legacy holders of the former. This shows up in their works. The two published poets are recording artists who have collaborated with rap and poetry artists while guest starring on the recordings of jazz & soul artists. The two have assembled a team, a band, of professional musicologists. Jazz musicians who self-define as fans and makers of dope rap music are amazing on stage. From Art of Cool (Durham, NC) to SoHo House (NYC) to Atlanta’s Apache to the Indie Soul Festival of Western Massachusetts to BlueNote to The National Jazz Museum to Rutgers IJC to The Nash (Phoenix) to upcoming dates in Detroit and Boston … The goal is to rock both genres, seamlessly. The group explores jazz-based samples that are central to Black culture and beyond. We rock the samples in their original context and then we transform them into the banging tracks the audience knows & loves. Also, the crowd gets to journey through a jazz, blues or soul piece with us. It is difficult to enjoy modern music without pointing out the influence of its jazz & soul beginnings. We want to examine this connection when we perform! Isaac Childs & Joel Holloway orchestrate the way. Having two amazing pianists and keyboardists, who are rooted in the Black tradition, allows for possibilities and tributaries. With these two maestros, #SSM can play from Tin Pan, the Songbooks, the Classics of the 60s/70s & jazz Standards. And, we can transmute an amazing piece, like Tyner’s “Impressions,” into a modern era hit, like “The Choice Is Yours” by Black Sheep. With intent, not gimmick or tribute, #SSM looks forward to playing the beauty of raps’ jazz in front of peers, elders and young folks. If we remove the genres music fails, styles are pale and language loses its flavor. (Plus, hip-hop is turning 50, it needs a jazzy birthday party!)