There are only a few established artists who are capable of reinventing themselves and jazz guitarist and Billboard chart-topper U-Nam is certainly one of them. As if to prove it he will release the genre busting “U-Nam Goes Big Band”, on March 27th.
Coming off the back of a scintillating 2019 that saw him enjoy huge chart success with his 2 sensational albums “Future Love Parts 1 and 2” (that reached #20 on the Top 25 Billboard Jazz Best Selling Album Chart and #8 in the Contemporary Jazz category) this is an exciting new direction for U-Nam to take but, with nine Top 30 Billboard radio hits already to his name and an approach recognized as always innovative and often daring, his reputation for shaking the musical world to its core is already firmly in place.
Since moving to the USA from Paris, France in 2007, U-Nam’s stature has skyrocketed. Now, as the founder and owner of the niche label Skytown Records, he is reshaping the many complexions of jazz in a way that makes him stand out from the crowd. His sophomore album “Back from the 80’s”included the #1 hit “Street Life” which stayed in the top three on the US Billboard chart for three months and in the top ten chart for an entire year.
By 2014, when the critically acclaimed “C’est Le Funk” hit the streets, his standing as a purveyor of high-octane guitar driven smooth jazz was well and truly established. A real landmark moment in U-Nam’s illustrious career came when he undertook the ambitious venture of creating the first ever tribute to the great George Benson.
Featuring jazz and r&b legends such as George Duke, Marcus Miller, Ronnie Foster, Patrice Rushen, Wah Wah Watson, Phil Perry, Stokley Williams and Paul Jackson Jr to name but a few, the album was endorsed by Bensonand included liner notes written by him. “Weekend in LA – A Tribute to George Benson” reached #1 on iTunes Japan for Jazz, #1 on Amazon US for Neo-Soul, #1 on Amazon US for Smooth Jazz and also received Grammyconsideration with 10 entries over 6 categories in 2012.
Start with Benson-esque guitar skills, add just a hint of Sinatra’s smile, a touch of Buble’s sophisticated swagger and a real big band playing real jazz with a real swing and what you have is magic, what you have is ”U-Nam Goes Big Band”.