'Lagos Pepper Soup', Michael’s second solo release, is an integration of all of his diverse musical influences. He picked a core band of Terreon Gully, Aaron Parks, Etienne Stadwijk, and enlisted the talents of Angélique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves Music, Regina Carter, Joe Lovano, Laura Mvula, Lionel Loueke, Grégoire Maret, Becca Stevens, Brandee Younger, Robert Mitchell and Onaje Jefferson, alongside top studio arrangers David Metzger, Joseph Joubert and Jason Michael Webb to realize his vision of what he calls Cinematic Afrobeat. His own virtuoso melodic bass playing shines throughout’. 

 

LAGOS PEPPER SOUP - Available now! Download/Stream HERE.

“A sonic experience of epic proportions”

WBGO 

 

"'Lagos Pepper Soup’ is out now. The album is a joyous realisation of what Michael calls Cinematic Afrobeat." 

Whirlwind Recordings  

 

"Brisk beats, busy arrangements (including some great string passages), songs and moods full of optimism and friendliness." 

Sonic Soul

 

"Olatuja himself is a versatile jazz bassist, bold and soulful with a flair for experimentation. Add Kidjo, the most accomplished and well-known West African diva...and the result is brilliant." 

PopMatters

 

"Indeed, Lagos Pepper Soup captures something bigger than an

all-star group, led by a twenty-first century virtuoso..."

- Bass Magazine

 

"...the album's brightest moments are in its evocation of pepper 

soup's purported healing qualities." 

PostGenre

 

"This recording aurally illustrates the places and spaces Michael has been, and it forecasts the shape of his Afrocentric jazz to come."

- Glide Magazine

 

"...Olatuja presents his spectacular blend of West African Afrobeats and jazz..." - Bass Musician Magazine

 

“The entire project comes off like an intricate sequence of events celebrating life, love, joy and hope – it’s the type of vision that forever emphasizes the importance of a fully-realized album.”

- UK Vibe 

 

"Olatuja delivers ten diverse, delightful and dancing tracks that effortlessly blend African Yoruba language and rhythms, hip hop-friendly beats and African-American religious strains, all anchored by Olatuja's supple, acoustic and electric bass lines that can trace their low-end ancestry to Ron Carter and Jaco Pastorius."  
Allaboutjazz - Eugene Holley, JR 

Blues and Soul - Cover feature and interview read more HERE.  

"EXPLOSIVE NEW ISSUE" 

We "touch bass" with London-born Lagos, Nigeria-raised New York-based electric and acoustic bassist/composer /bandleader

Michael Olatuja & Lagos Pepper Soup

one of the in-demand bassists known...

 

I'm absolutely thrilled to share that my new album "Lagos Pepper Soup" is up for multiple categories at this years’ Grammy awards including Best World Music Album, Best Music Video, Best Gospel Performance, Best Instrumental Composition, Best Arrangement and many others. If you're a voting member of the Recording Academy, It would be a privilege if you considered my album. I invite you to enjoy the world of "Lagos Pepper Soup" HERE

# # #

BLISS BOWEN
THE PASADENA WEEKLY
"A liberating sense of traveling infuses standout tracks “The Hero’s Journey,” the Mvula-sung groover “Brighter Day,” and the aptly titled closer, “Grace." Read the full review 
here.

KEVIN LE GENDRE
JAZZWISE
"A thorough command of hard-hitting afrobeat, jazz and funk enables Olatuja to make appealing music that draws a coherent line from the rhythmically and metrically complex to ballads with a soulful or folkish beauty." Read the full feature 
here.

 

JOHN MORRISON
BANDCAMP DAILY
"Lagos Pepper Soup is an ambitious work of African diasporic jazz. Olatuja’s bass playing throughout the album is vibrant and endlessly creative." Read the full feature 
here.

 

GARRY BOOTH
BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE
"Lagos Pepper Soup [is] a bubbling Afro-jazz concoction that encompasses cinematic strings arrangement, as well as small group simplicity... an ambitious project." Four star review in the July issue. 

GENO THACKARA
ALL ABOUT JAZZ
 "Lagos Pepper Soup is a rich meal to take time over, if only because each serving is a full-packed mini-buffet in itself."  Read the full review  
here.

 

STEPHEN GRAHAM
MARLBANK
"When Grammy time comes around surely Olatuja deserves consideration particularly for the quality of arranging and composition. This sort of record does not come along every year."  Read the full review  
here.

 

KEVIN JOHNSON
NO TREBLE
"Even with the thick cast of stars, Olatuja’s bass playing shines throughout. His style is described as “a combination of Abraham Laboriel’s percussive approach, John Patitucci’s acoustic and electric fluency, and Richard Bona’s Cameroonian-derived inventions.” Check out the mesmerizing video for the album’s title track, which also has some Marcus Miller influence peppered in: Read the full article 
here.

ADRIANE PONTECORVO
POPMATTERS
"The track is as powerful a tribute to his mother as it is a demonstration of his creativity and knack for collaboration. Olatuja's mentor, 
Angélique Kidjo, whom he calls both "the queen and legend" and "like my big sister", takes on lead vocals, as strong a powerhouse as ever as she sings and grooves side by side with Olatuja." Read the full premiere here.

KEANNA FAIRCLOTH
WBGO
Five years in the making, the project is a tale of three cities — from London to Lagos to New York — with Olatuja blending the sounds of all three. With Afrobeat and jazz set against a tapestry of orchestral arrangements by Broadway ace Joseph Joubert, Tony Award-winner Jason Michael Webb, and Disney film orchestrator David Metzger, Lagos Pepper Soup could easily be used as a soundtrack. Read the full feature 
here.

BRIAN ZIMMERMAN
JAZZIZ
Listen to the playlist 
here.

 

JAMAAL BAPTISTE
BLACK GROOVES
"Lagos Pepper Soup contains many brilliant musical renderings performed by a great supporting cast of internationally renowned artists. But ultimately, it serves as the soundtrack to the musical journey of Michael Olatuja." Read the full review  
here.

JIM HYNES
GLIDE MAGAZINE
"This recording aurally illustrates the places and spaces Michael Olatuja has been, and it forecasts the shape of his Afrocentric jazz to come. The tapestries he weaves are beautiful, complex, and inspiring, demanding repeat listens. "  Read the full review  
here.

 

STEPHEN MOSHER
BROADWAYWORLD 
For Broadway Pit Musicians The Music Goes On While In Quarantine. Read the full feature 
here.

ROB SHEPHERD
POSTGENRE
"Across many cultures, soup – whether chicken noodle, miso soba, or pepper- has been used to help recover from illness, Unfortunately, a meal itself is unlikely to cure the coronavirus pandemic ravaging the globe. However, at a time in which people’s stress levels, fear, and distrust are at their peak, it can assuage divisions and provide peace. Chef James Beard once noted that “food is the common denominator that brings people together.” In inviting listeners to the table, on Lagos Pepper Soup, Michael Olatuja emphasizes that music is as well." Read the full review 
here.

NATE CHINEN
WBGO
“The Hero’s Journey” is an anthemic piece that features violinist Regina Carter, against a full string orchestration by Dave Metzger. The video above captures footage from the studio session, with a catch: it cuts off just after Carter begins her solo, which is certainly worth hearing in full. Consider it an appetizer, until Lagos Pepper Soup is served (by Whirlwind Recordings) on June 12;" Watch the video 
here.

BOLAJI ALONGE
EYES OF A LAGOS BOY
Read full news piece 
here.

BASS MUSICIAN MAGAZINE
Read full news piece 
here.

BASS MAGAZINE
Read full news piece 
here.

BEN RICHMOND
AFROPOP WORLDWIDE
"There's something very orchestral in how motifs are introduced, and swirl through the vocal, string and guitar lines, and finally all come together in a majestic and satisfying way. In Olatuja's hands, cinematic Afrobeat is a must-watch." Watch video premier 
here.

EDITOR
LAB.FM
"Most of my recordings are like that: Whatever season or journey I’m going through in my life, the music speaks to myself [and] others.” Read the full review  
here.

 

IMRAN MIRZA
UK VIBE
"The entire project comes off like an intricate sequence of events celebrating life, love, joy and hope – it’s the type of vision that forever emphasises the importance of a fully-realised album." Read the full 5/5 review 
here

CHRIS SPECTOR
MIDWEST RECORDS
"Certainly a treat for the armchair traveler, anyone with happy feet will know what's going on here. Hot stuff. Read the full review 
here

 

HECTOR MARTIN
CANCIÓN A QUEMARROPA (ES)
Read full news piece 
here