The Kingdom Choir, beatboxer SK Shlomo and singer-songwriter Peter Collins are among the latest names confirmed for the Royal Albert Hall’s series of exclusive streamed shows. They will be joined in the line-up by multi-instrumentalist Becca Stevens, classical accordionist Ksenija Sidorova, and jazz vocalist Deelee Dubé.
These shows, coming direct from artists’ homes, will be available to stream at www.royalalberthall.com/RAHome, alongside all previous sessions. The Kingdom Choir performance will be on Friday 17 July at 7:30pm.
Since launching on 9 April with Rufus Wainwright, the Royal Albert Home strand has featured more than 40 performances from acclaimed artists such as Sinéad Harnett, Ayanna Witter-Johnson, Lucy Dacus, Imogen Heap and Richard Thompson, racking up 1.2m streams and raising more than £100,000 for the venue, which is closed for the first time since the Blitz.
Lucy Noble, Artistic Director of the Royal Albert Hall, said: “With this series, we’ve tried to reflect the unique eclecticism of the Hall’s programme by showcasing an extraordinary collection of world-class artists working across innumerable genres – and performing exclusive sessions for us from their studios, garages or front rooms. These exciting new shows will spotlight everything from classical accordion to beatboxing, encompassing gospel, jazz and a couple of the most interesting singer-songwriters working today.”
The current series will run until Sunday 23 August, with more performances to be announced soon.
The Kingdom Choir is made up of singers from in and around London, and led by one of the UK’s most respected gospel tutors and choir conductors, Karen Gibson. The choir became world-famous after performing ‘Stand by Me’ at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in May 2018. They released a debut album, also entitled Stand by Me, five months later, and the following year sang ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ before the first game of the 2019 Major League Baseball London Series. The Kingdom Choir are currently supporting domestic violence charity Refuge with the release of their first original song, ‘Real Love’.
SK Shlomo is a genre-defying, award-winning, record-breaking beatboxer, producer and live-looper. As Shlomo, he burst into the mainstream collaborating with Björk and performing with famous fans including Damon Albarn, Lily Allen and Imogen Heap. As the first ever World Looping Champion, he taught his friend Ed Sheeran some tricks. He has played the main stage at Glastonbury, won rave reviews for his autobiographical one-man shows, and even had a feature film made about him. His debut album, Surrender, was released last year.
Peter Collins is a singer-songwriter from New Jersey who first built a following online, posting expressive covers of R&B, soul and jazz songs. His first album, Love and Mind, came out in 2018.
Ksenija Sidorova is one of the world’s leading ambassadors for the classical accordion. Her repertoire spans from Bach to Piazzolla, from Efrem Podgaits and Václav Trojan to Erkki-Sven Tüür and George Bizet, as well as two new accordion concertos composed especially for her, and a multitude of chamber projects. She has appeared on many of the world’s most prestigious stages, and was one of the special guests at Bryn Terfel’s 50th birthday concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 2015, alongside Sting and Danielle De Niese.
Deelee Dubé was the winner of the 2016 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. Brought up in London, she is the product of an African music lineage: the daughter of South African jazz pianist Jabu Nkosi, and the granddaughter of saxophonist and bandleader Zacks (Isaac) Nkosi. A songwriter, poet and singer, Dubé is a regular performer at Ronnie Scott’s, and made her Hall debut as part of the Late Night Jazz strand in 2018.
Becca Stevens is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in Brooklyn. Since making her debut with the 2008 album, Tea Bye Sea, she has won plaudits for her distinctive blend of genres including jazz, Irish folk and indie-rock. Her latest album, Wonderbloom (2020), is a dance record with elements of pop, funk and R&B.
To watch the shows, enjoy any previous performance on catch-up, or donate to the Hall’s fundraising appeal, go to www.royalalberthall.com/RAHome.
Listings info:
Nashville Meets London: with The Cadillac Three, Michael Ray, Tenille Townes, and Twinnie
Saturday 18 July, 7:30pm
Classical for Kids: Piano Party, with Dawn Hardwick
Saturday 25 July, 2pm
The Kingdom Choir
Friday 17 July, 7:30pm
Ksenija Sidorova
Wednesday 29 July, 7:30pm
Becca Stevens
Thursday 30 July, 7:30pm
SK Shlomo
Friday 31 July, 7:30pm
Peter Collins
Thursday 6 August, 7:30pm
Deelee Dubé
Wednesday 12 August, 7:30pm
