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May 30, 2018 By Christopher Roberts Kamasi Washington

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Jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington is releasing a double album, Heaven and Earth, on June 22 via Young Turks. Previously he shared its first two singles, “Fists of Fury” (a cover of the theme to the Bruce Lee film) and “The Space Travelers Lullaby” (they were our joint #1 Song of the Week). Now he has shared another song from the album, “Street Fighter Mas.” He has also shared a preview of the song’s forthcoming video, directed by A.G. Rojas. Check out both below, followed by his upcoming tour dates.

Washington had this to say about the song in a press release: “When I was younger, I was in between the end of the arcade generation and the beginning of the console generation. We used to go to this place called Rexall to play Street Fighter. At Rexall, there would be different people from different hoods there playing the game. It was the one place that was like an equalizer. It was just about how good you were at Street Fighter...for the most part. In other places, you were afraid of these dudes; there, you would just play the game and it was what it was, you know? I was really good at Street Fighter, so where the song really came from was me jokingly saying I was going to have my own theme song so that when I showed up to play Street Fighter they’d play my theme song before I came in, like a boxer. In the context of the album, it was the connection that we got with those guys in our neighborhood. We used to call them OGs, the older guys that we looked up to.

“In a lot of ways, for me, video games was the way I connected with them because I was never affiliated with any gangs, but I knew them and I was cool with them and that was mainly through the video games. At an older age I thought how amazing would it be if the OGs could just play the game and solve their problems that way. The meaning within the scope of the record is a connection to the past and all of the many ways we can connect.”

Washington had this to say about the album in a previous press release: “‘The world that my mind lives in, lives in my mind.’ This idea inspired me to make this album Heaven and Earth. The reality we experience is a mere creation of our consciousness, but our consciousness creates this reality based on those very same experiences. We are simultaneously the creators of our personal universe and creations of our personal universe. The Earth side of this album represents the world as I see it outwardly, the world that I am a part of. The Heaven side of this album represents the world as I see it inwardly, the world that is a part of me. Who I am and the choices I make lie somewhere in between.”

Heaven and Earth includes a new arrangement of jazz and bebop legend Freddie Hubbard’s “Hubtones.” Bandmate Ryan Porter also contributed one song. The album also features Thundercat, Terrace Martin, Ronald Bruner, Jr., Cameron Graves, Brandon Coleman, Miles Mosley, Patrice Quinn, Tony Austin, and others.

Washington’s last full-length album was 2015’s The Epic, although last year he released the Harmony of Difference EP. Despite being a jazz musician, Washington has crossed over to indie rock and hip-hop fans thanks to collaborations with St. Vincent, Ibeyi, Thundercat, Kendrick Lamar, Flying Lotus, Run the Jewels, and others.

When I was young, I was obsessed with Street Fighter! I thought I was going to be a professional gamer, so I made a theme song. I still imagine it playing when I walk into a tournament, kind of like I’m entering a boxing ring. Street Fighter Mas is available everywhere now! Link in bio. ????: @a.g.rojas

A post shared by kamasi washington (@kamasiwashington) on May 30, 2018 at 6:08am PDT

Kamasi Washington Tour Dates:

May 30 - Brussels, Belgium - Salle De La Madeleine
June 1 - Amsterdam, Holland - Paradiso
June 2 - Hamburg, Germany - Elbjazz Festival
June 3 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset
June 15 - New York, NY - Forest Hills Stadium†
June 16 - Minneapolis, MN - Rock the Garden
June 23 - Pasadena, CA - Arroyo Seco
June 24 - Vancouver, BC - Queen Elizabeth Theatre
June 25 - Saskatoon, SK - Saskatchewan Jazz Festival
June 29 - Waitsfield, VT - Friendly Gathering
June 30 - Montreal, Quebec - Festival International de Jazz de Montreal
July 12 - Berkeley, CA - Greek Theater‡
July 25 - Detroit, MI - Chene Park Amphitheater
August 4 - Dublin, Ireland - Beatyard Festival
August 5 - Oxfordshire, U.K. - Wilderness Festival
August 7 - Mainz, Germany - Frankfurter Hof Mainz @ Zitadelle Mainz
August 9 - Antwerp, Belgium - Jazz Middelheim
August 10 - Copenhagen, Denmark - HAVEN
August 11 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Way Out West
August 12 - Helsinki, Finland - FLOW
August 17-19 - Tokyo, Japan - Summer Sonic Festival
October 17 - Seattle, WA - The Showbox
October 18 - Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
October 19 - San Francisco, CA - TBA
October 20 - San Luis Obispo, CA - Fremont Theater
October 22 - Santa Fe, NM - Meow Wolf
October 24 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Complex
October 25 - Aspen, CO - Belly Up
October 26 - Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
October 27 - Boulder, CO - Boulder Theater
October 29 - Kansas City, MO - The Truman
October 31 - Iowa City, IA - The Englert Theatre
November 1 - Minneapolis, MN - TBA
November 2 - Madison, WI - TBA
November 3 - Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre
November 5 - Toronto, CA - Sony Centre for The Performing Arts
November 7 - Portland, ME - State Theatre
November 8 - Boston, MA - Royale
November 9 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
November 10 - Washington D.C. - Lincoln Theatre
November 14 - Richmond, VA - The National
November 15 - Raleigh, NC - The Ritz
November 16 - Nashville, TN - Marathon Music Works
November 17 - Atlanta, GA - Buckhead Theatre

*with Vulfpeck
†with Alt-J
‡with Sylvan Esso

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