Kamasi Washington is heading back to Australia.
The virtuoso LA saxophonist and composer brings his ‘Fearless Movement’ tour Down Under, with a headline show in Melbourne and a festival stop at Vivid Sydney and Open Season at QPAC in Brisbane.
Washington will headline Melbourne’s Palais Theatre on Wednesday, June 11th, after a festival date at Vivid Sydney (Carriageworks) on Sunday, June 8th. The tour wraps up in Brisbane at QPAC Concert Hall on Thursday, June 12th.
A Live Nation pre-sale kicks off at 9am, Wednesday, March 26th, running for 24 hours. General public tickets go live at 10am, Thursday, March 27th local time. Grab yours at livenation.com.au.
Washington will be joined by rising Australian artist Micah Heathwood on the Sydney and Melbourne dates.
Washington last toured Australia in 2022 as a special guest on Khruangbin’s Australian tour, playing Fremantle, Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane in November and December. He also played a one-off show at the Sydney Opera House.
Now promoting his latest album, Fearless Movement, Washington showcases collaborations with Thundercat, funk legend George Clinton, Inglewood rapper D Smoke, BJ the Chicago Kid, and André 3000.
Calling it his “dance album,” Washington explains, “It’s not literal. Dance is movement and expression, and in a way it’s the same thing as music – expressing your spirit through your body. That’s what this album is pushing.”
A modern jazz icon, Washington’s acclaimed discography includes The Epic, Harmony of Difference (originally commissioned for the 2017 Whitney Biennial), and Heaven and Earth.
One of his most notable accolades is winning the first (and only) American Music Prize for his three-disc album, The Epic. The prize was presented in 2016 by the team behind the Australian Music Prize.
Beyond his solo work in jazz and fusion, Washington has toured and recorded with the likes of Snoop Dogg, Raphael Saadiq, Kendrick Lamar, Gerald Wilson, Lauryn Hill, Mos Def, Harvey Mason, and Chaka Khan. Most notably, he performed throughout Kendrick’s groundbreaking 2015 album, To Pimp a Butterfly.
