For Kamasi Washington, This is Just the Prologue

For our latest Digital Cover Story, the Los Angeles-based tenor saxophonist and bandleader discusses dancing, George Clinton, fatherhood and his no-wrong-notes mentality., that’s about to change, at least in terms of its conceptual framework. The Los Angeles-based tenor saxophonist, composer and bandleader, on albums like 2018’sexplores the simple act of dancing as a form of expression.

As adults, we’re often reluctant to truly let go and dance, out of a fear of other people judging us or thinking we look outright foolish. Children, though, usually have no inhibitions. That’s a realization that Washington witnessed himself when he recently became a father; to say the least, it’s a fairly significant life change that he has undergone in the time since his last proper album.

Now, Washington no longer identifies as a musician first and foremost. He considers himself a father first and an artist second. Musicianship is still integral to his self-perception, but it’s not the primary occupant anymore. “You go from having your identity being like, ‘I’m a musician,’ and then that takes a backseat,” he says.

“We had the song, and I wanted some youthful energy to it,” Washington recalls. “I thought it would be cool to have them rap over something that wasn’t a loop, and it’s like the music is just going. They’re rapping and flowing with the musicians in a way that I thought was really dope. It’s like the words and the music are really contrapuntal and interacting with each other.” And that’s exactly the effect that “Asha the First” pulls off.

One song Washington is especially excited to perform is “Get Lit.” He feels like it has the potential to open up the most, the largest capacity for turning into something that’s wholly different from what we get on the record. Written by Ronald Bruner Jr. and featuring the legendary P-Funk mastermind George Clinton and rapper D Smoke, “Get Lit” might be the closest thing to a traditional pop song in Washington’s extensive repertoire.

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