05 Jun U’mau shares Sound Journeys Of The Lost and Found
The image of the Bohemian musician is alive and well in London-born, internationally raised singer-songwriter U’mau Otuokon. This is no gimmick, mind you. The easy-going mannerisms, positive energy and Bo-ho raiment are all the artist’s own.
The daughter of a diplomat, U’mau’s slightly transatlantic inflections betray an intercontinental upbringing, one which saw her living in far flung destinations such as Russia, Cameroon, Spain and Canada. Along the way she picked up some Spanish and French as well as smatterings of her parents’ indigenous Ibibio and Efik tongues of South-Eastern Nigeria.
On U’mau’s debut album Sound Journeys of the Lost and Found you can hear influences from West Africa, Central and South America, the Middle-East, as well as more conventional western R&B rhythms. I imagine her nomadic childhood must have had a knock-on effect on her art; an insatiable restlessness maybe, to try new things...
Live showcases come two a penny in London and are often a hit-and-miss affair. Thus it’s always a relief to stumble across up and coming acts who set such high standards that they leave the rest lagging behind. These discoveries are motivation enough to keep going to such events. Last Wednesday at the Troubadour Club, South-West London was a case in point.
I went with the intention of watching singer-songwriter U’mau perform some new material with her terrific band-and she did not disappoint. I didn’t bargain, however, on the room-silencing talents of composer, pianist and vocalist