Kinzoogianna’s Queendom of Sound (I Love Music) takes Hale Smith’s standard and flips it into a Badu-meets-Bassey storm: jazz roots, hip-hop grit, gospel strings, flute solos, and a vocal bite that feels more manifesto than melody. This is a reclamation, a feminist power play set against a scene still clogged with gatekeepers.
Her new album, The Clique of ’86, crashes autobiography into Essex teenage chaos and broken-beat roots—no nostalgia cosplay, just maximalism with teeth. Bold orchestrations, rage disguised as groove, and lyrics that cut between cheeky flex and raw truth.
We caught up with Kinzoogianna to talk queendom, rage as fuel, and why she’s determined to make jazztronica hit like both a history lesson and a party.
Rage is a very valuable emotion. I’d like to bring it out more! Many people suppress it and need music and art to allow themselves to cathartise it.
Queendom of Sound (I Love Music) flips Hale Smith’s classic into a Badu-meets-Bassey storm. Was this reinvention an act of homage, rebellion — or both?
Homage, for sure! I’ve been playing I Love Music just as a jazz standard on piano for years, and transcribing Ahmad Jamal’s version, with his endless variations. Famously, and much discussed, when the trio kick in after 3.50 of beautiful solo piano, the tape does a weird thing and it creates an incredible goosebump moment. I didn’t even know Nas had sampled this tune. I spotted it on first listen and my heart stopped! They’d chopped up and changed key halfway through the sample so I transcribed their version for the outro. I’d been a fan of his for years and saw him blow away the 02 with WuTang Clan. So I had a very personal and organic experience which I needed to build on.
You call it an anthem of feminine musical power. In a scene still dominated by male gatekeepers, what does “queendom” really look like to you?
Being independent so I don’t have to be told what to do or mansplained to.
It means having to work very hard to fund everything but it’s pushed me and it’s kept my music original.
It means very long days but the feeling of autonomy and power.
It means being able to speak my mind and be myself without fear of being made homeless, fired, dropped or rejected.
Jazz, hip-hop, gospel strings, flute solos — you throw the whole arsenal at this track. How do you know when a song has enough?
To me this song is quite simple still. I’m from an Earth Wind and Fire/Weather Report era. I’ve played in big bands, and my other band Brotherly had complex songs that were chock full of sounds and concepts.
The drum loops are the most simple of the album, and there’s so much space between the vocal lines.
I have a strong instinct for what I like, so I just follow that!
Also there comes a point when the logic file starts lagging, so that’s a good indicator to stop!
That line, “the kings of the keys kneel down to my digit queens” — is that a manifesto, a warning, or just you flexing?
I’m actually a quite humble person because jazz is so difficult and there are so many great players around me so I created a character to hide behind for this one. Queenie does what her tin says.
I don’t usually diva up with the Bassey blues bending and vibrato so much, but this needed it! I’ve been playing piano for decades and finally feel like I’m getting somewhere. It’s a bit tongue in cheek really but one of my favourite lyrics I’ve written. ‘Subjects of song they slave to serve me’
Very Bassey!
The Clique of ’86 is a concept album rooted in your Essex teenage years. How does autobiography translate into groove without becoming nostalgia cosplay?
Well I think it HAS become that amongst other things. It’s helped me feel affection for myself and my past which was the purpose. It’s been the most incredibly fun project, so many people have enjoyed it and good memories have been made. The subject matters have been gritty, so it hasn’t resulted in anything cheesy or shallow.
Check out this documentary on the characters and concepts of the album
Mind Your Business (Stubbsy’s Lament)is a teenage rant turned dancefloor heater. Does rage still fuel your writing, or have you learned to disguise it better?
Rage is a very valuable emotion. I’d like to bring it out more! Many people suppress it and need music and art to allow themselves to cathartise it. I’m here to help people wake up to injustice, gas lighting, sexism, inequality, the list is endless. Being angry isn’t mutually exclusive from happiness either. I think you can’t be truly happy without being ok with all your feelings.
You’ve been part of London’s broken beat lineage since Brotherly. How does Kinzoogianna push that legacy forward rather than just revisiting it?
I’ll never be able to recreate the Brotherly or even the true broken beat sound, hopefully my music is original but I am heavily influenced by music that is 40-80 years old. I’m not sure I’ve done anything truly innovative. YET.
Collaboration with Rob Mullarkey runs deep here — bass, mixing, history. What’s the secret to keeping a creative partnership alive without it going stale?
Having a son together helps! I would find it difficult working with another mix engineer simply because he’s the only one I’ve worked with. And he’s a genius.
I’m very lucky. We like the same music.
You’re not afraid of maximalism — bold production, big orchestration. Do you think “restraint” in jazztronica has become overrated?
I didn’t know it was a thing! I do love any kind of music that works. There’s so many ways of expressing without using much material. I’m never going to be that person though!
When the album drops live at 91 Living Room, what do you want people to walk away with — a history lesson, a party, or a challenge?
Good question, and one I need to think about more, but considering they are going to get a couple of brotherly hits too, there’s going to be some head nodding/scratching/note taking. I want people to feel challenged of course, there’s a lot of risk taking, complex stuff, free jazz, and also pure poppy moments. My main priority is that new feelings are generated and reality is suspended for an hour, this is my take on jazz and hopefully it will inspire a few people.
©fm
Live launch party at Jazz Refreshed @ 91 Living Room Brick Lane London on 11th Sep.
instagram.com/kinzoogianna
