Category Archives: Media

Village Voice Shows Love to ‘…just visiting three’

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This Wham! Cover By Zo! And Phonte is Pretty Fantastic!
Source: The Village Voice 

By: Maura Johnston

Right off the bat I should tell you that “Everything She Wants” by Wham! has been one of my favorite songs since I first heard it as an impressionable nine-year-old, even though its themes of love being washed away by consumerism and economic pressures were far beyond my years; its gentle shimmy and dollop of funk on already-existing synthpop tropes—and, of course, the bravura vocal by the pre-Faith George Michael (particularly on the breakdown)—made me drop the needle on it again and again. This morning I was alerted to a cover of the track by the musician-producer Zo! and Phonte (late of Little Brother, now of The Foreign Exchange), and oh is it good; it slows the track down just enough to wring the longing out of it in a completely different way, with sputtering synths and a nice, juicy bassline. And there’s even a shout-out to Michael Jackson near the end, although I won’t spoil its exact nature… Read the Full Article

Zo! + Sy Smith Interview with SoulCuts.org

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We were cuttin up a bit in this interview… lol Enjoy!

 

Source: SoulCuts.org

By: Paul Cutting

At the start of March, 2011 I was backstage at the Jazz Cafe prior to ZO! and Sy Smith‘s first solo London show, lucky enough to have scored an interview. The pair had hopped the channel that morning following a successful performance in Paris to come and entertain the crowd at the KEEP THE FAITH ‘NEO SOULWW’ event. How on earth they retained any enthusiasm for an interview with little old SoulCuts is beyond me, but Sy beckoned me into the room with a warm and sweet demeanour before getting on with the ironing. The previous interviewer hung around chatting with them while I stood in the corner, quiet, feeling a bit of a lemon, but that’s cool, it’s not an unusual look for me.

In an uninspiring room at the top of the Jazz Cafe, Zo! was spread out across what I can only describe as a huge slanted wooden donut, possibly the most uncomfortable piece of furniture since the electric chair. ZO! is a pretty big guy – not fat, mind you (that’s my forte!), regardless of how much macaroni cheese he wishes to gobble (quite a lot, apparently!), but he nonetheless carries a strong physical presence. Aligned to that physicality seemed to be a shy nature. This is somebody who clearly speaks honestly through the music (a thought further evidenced by his blistering performance on the Camden stage later that night) without any unnecessary embellishments.

Click to continue reading: Zo! + Sy Smith Interview with SoulCuts.org

Nu Jazz Spirit – Zo! + Sy Smith Paris Show Review

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Source: Nu Jazz Spirit

My friends,
After a pause for a week, I am back on the blogosphere with some newness! But before, let me share with you my impressions after attending maybe one of the best Soul shows so far this year. It was held on March 5th in Paris. Funnily enough, I was not supposed to be there that night. But apparently fate decided for me. SY SMITH & ZO! ,members of The Foreign Exchange, hit Paris for their 1st solo show together. They performed live at the Bizz’Art. The show was set up by Soulissime. A shame that this event did not create a buzz However, the venue was packed ! Absolutely!

Click Here to continue reading:  Nu Jazz Spirit – Zo! + Sy Smith Paris Show Review

SoulBounce Names Zo! Their 2010 Producer Of the Year!

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Source: SoulBounce · By Ivory

While here at the SB headquarters we don’t always see eye-to-eye in terms of music, one thing we do agree on is that 2010 was, indeed, the year of Lorenzo Ferguson better known to all as Zo!. Many of the Detroit-bred, D.C.-based multi-instrumentalist and producer’s melodies provided the soundtrack to our 2010. Let’s face it, he seemed to be everywhere this year. Zo! managed to hit us off with stellar production work nearly every season this year, making him easily the SoulBounce Honors 2010 Producer of the Year.

Zo! kicked things off in the spring, when his fellow Foreign Exchange Music labelmate YahZarah released her highly-anticipated album, The Ballad of Purple Saint James. He lent his production talents to her single “Cry Over You” featuring Phonte. The funky, upbeat track provided the perfect backdrop for YahZarah’s sassy rebound tale.

By the time the summer release of his own full-length FE Music debut, SunStorm, we were practically foaming at the mouth with anticipation of the musical delicacies our ears were about to feast on. And boy, did he not disappoint. Drawing comparisions to Stevie Wonder‘s Songs in the Key of Life, SunStorm served up a delicious composition of musicianship and artistry. As previously stated in our review of the album, “While some producers may stumble when their musical ambitions find them dabbling in different genres, Zo! expertly navigates vast musical terrain.” Nearly six months later, this album continues to amaze with his wide-range of talents, sprinkling in a dash of jazz here, a spoonful of broken beat there and a whole lotta fun, spirited soul and hip-hop ingredients in between.

In with the cool weather of the fall, came the equally-cool third group project, Authenticity, from The Foreign Exchange. While most production was still held-down by FE co-founder Nicolay, Zo!’s fingerprints still remained all over this album. Picking up where the group’s previous project, Leave It All Behind, left all, this album was melancholy and slightly-experimental, where LIAB was hopeful and soulful. Zo! even took a turn on the mic–albeit a talkbox mic–on “Don’t Wait.” Whether he was leading us through the highs of love or guiding us through the dreary days of heartbreak, Zo! consistently used his musical prowess to help bring the vivid emotions to life. Through his fingertips, we were able to feel sentiment just as clearly as we could hear it.

And to think, Zo! managed to deliver a crop of good music all while holding down a full-time gig as a music teacher in Washington, D.C. By showcasing us such a versatile range of musical portraits in 2010, we can only imagine what Zo! has in store for us in 2011. If next year is anything like this past one has been, then you better make room on your iPods for more phenemonal music.

SoulTracks Critics Choose ‘SunStorm’ As One Of “The Best Albums of 2010”

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Source: SoulTracks.com

It is always fun at the end of each year to celebrate the best of that year. And 2010 had a lot of great music.

And so we’ve lassoed our music critics to each pick their favorites, which we’ve assembled below in alphabetical order (by artist name). These are uniformly releases with which you can’t go wrong — or so our critics say. Looking for a Christmas gift for a music lover? Then spend some time with these winners.

The toughest part of this is limiting the choices, but, imperfect as they are, here are the selections from Peggy Oliver (PO), Detrel Howell (DH), Reg Jones (RJ), Chris Rizik (CR), L. Michael Gipson (LMG), Melody Charles (MC), J Matthew Cobb (JMC) and Howard Dukes (HD). Also, each album cover is a link to either CD Baby or Amazon, where you can generally listen to clips from the disc or where you can purchase it.

We know these picks will have SoulTrackers talking. So be sure to comment below to let us know what we did right and what we missed!

Read more: The Best Albums of 2010 – Our Critics Picks! | SoulTracks – Soul Music Biographies, News and Reviews

TGRIOnline.com reviews N’Dambi and Zo! Dec. 10th Show at Black Cat, Washington DC

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Source: True Genius Requires Insanity · By Marcus Dowling

On paper, a night featuring heralded underground soul songstress N’Dambi and local DC cause celebre with national trending aspirations Zo! (government name Lorenzo Ferguson) sounds like a recipe for success. The two artists represent the twin hopes for traditional rhythm and blues style in the 21st century. N’Dambi, a former backup singer for Erykah Badu, carries forth the Nona Hendryx meets Nina Simone style artistry of her mentor, music as art, art as music, a funky melange of rock and soul. Zo!, alongside his Foreign Exchange Records supported “Sunstorm All Stars” supporting cast is a producer, composer and songwriter par excellence, a little bit of Isaac Hayes, a little bit of Smokey Robinson, with a spoonful of Ramsey Lewis tossed in for good measure, a feel good sultry blend of adult contemporary music. He’s not concerned with popping bottles, he’s concerned with getting deeper into the heart of the matter. However, on this night in Washington, DC, what was drawn up on paper, failed to materialize, as a night with the best of intentions fell short of their destination.

This is not to say that it was a night that was without spellbinding performances. Zo and his Sunstorm All Stars are the best live act in soul music today. Having witnessed their live show twice this year, it’s easily the best ticket in the genre. It has everything you’d expect from the more mainstream side of R & B, just not wrapped in a broadcloth of tawdry behavior. This is classic music by extremely talented musicians who know what that means. Lead single from Zo’s latest album Sunstorm, “This Could Be The Night” is a sensual jam with a George Benson swing, meaning that for more modern ears, it recalls Montell Jordan’s “Get It On Tonight,” in that it’s grown and sexy without being debased. The set features the ever dapper Ferguson behind a dual decker keyboard and organ, a consummate band leader, leading his charges through a tightly produced set that highlights exquisite artistry. Though Monica Blaire was not present, Deborah Bond’s take on the 11 minute suite “Make Love To Me” was absolutely magical. The song is a moody jazz winner, allowing for a virtuoso female vocalist to improvise and reach an orgasmic peak under the blanket of restrained elegance. If not aware, it is the year’s finest soul performance, and absolutely worthy of consideration for achievement.

This is not to say that the performance by the Grammy nominated N’Dambi was by any means without merit. She’s a toned statuesque rock star with great presence and a glorious red dyed afro/mohawk. Her album Pink Elephant is a heartfelt, earnest and well meaning melancholy burner of a soul record. Owing a great deal more to a bohemian aesthetic than the uptown swing of Ferguson, the performance was not entirely well received by a crowd who had been inspired to move, groove, get turned on and turned out by the Sunstorm All-Stars. If she followed a more muted performer, the likelihood of an entire room being captivated by her would have occurred, however this was not the case. Opener “L.I.E.,” a tale of a cheating male who travels to his lady loves along both ends of the thoroughfare is excellent, as was the single most responsible for Pink Elephant’s success, “Can’t Hardly Wait.” In abiding by a performance standard that involves a loose band performance, and an insistence upon intimate discussion, for the N’Dambi loyalist, it was an ideal environment. However, if looking to be blown away by a performance, that would appear to not be her strongest suit as a live artist. Adopting some of the more captivating aspects of the live performance of her mentor Ms. Badu is an absolute necessity.

Overall, this was a phenomenal evening of diverse styles of soul music. However, in slotting the honed and crafted Sunstorm All-Stars in front of the thinking woman’s sensual bohemain jam session of N’Dambi, the night was a study in styles instead of a fully realized total night of  complete entertainment.

The Couch Sessions Interview

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INTERVIEW: Zo! creates a SunStorm at CMJ

Written by: sondai

If you see me walking down the street with these bright green and blue earbuds on I am more than likely listening to one of two play lists (not that the others on the iPod are garbage but I am just in this mood…). The first being a recently acquired dedication to moi from a certain BK producer and the second being my tried and true “nothing can touch me when this album is playing” album. That would be the latest from Detroit area native Zo!, SunStorm is on constant rotation. 12 full bodied tracks of nothing but good music with some major voices from Lady Alma, YahZarah, Darien Brockington to Monica Blaire and Phonte. I was fortunate enough to get on this brother’s dance card and ask him a few questions about his musical decisions that have lead him to this space in time.

So how did a Michigan native migrate to the DMV? What was the deciding factor for your move?

Before I moved, I was contemplating either coming to the East Coast or moving out west. I decided to move east because there are so many different markets and cities up and down I-95 that I felt it would be beneficial to advancing my musical career. The fact that I have a ton of  family in Maryland made the move a bit more natural… It was fairly easy to get adjusted out this way.

Coming from such a historic place in the music game do you feel like there are different standards that you must adhere to?

Well, I know that I am my own worst critic… I don’t like too much of anything. I think that the area I’m from has an influence on my standards, yes….But it also has to do with the company I keep in The Foreign Exchange family and the way that I want to have my music presented as well. The standards are sky high, and that’s how I like it. It keeps me not only grounded as an artist but heavily motivated to continue to raise those standards with each piece of work.

What or who have been your musical influences/inspirations?

My first and major influences are my parents, they are the ones who brought me up around great music as well as the ones who pushed me to play piano growing up although I absolutely HATED it. It was their push and support that has gotten me to this point and that’s huge because on too many occasions you hear stories of artists’ loved ones not supporting them in their careers, so I consider myself extremely blessed to have had them in my corner from day one.

On your latest endeavor, SunStorm, you have a host of talent that you have worked with… How hard was it to coordinate schedules to work on this project? What were your biggest challenges?

I think the fact that there were TWO people (Phonte and I) making sure things ran smoothly rather than just me helped a WHOLE lot in regards to coordinating schedules and making sure that deadlines were honored, etc. Schedule conflicts were definitely the biggest challenges, I mean… we were working with some of the best out there, artists who are in high demand. So kats were on the road, in the studio working on other things, or just caught up in general. But the fact that they ALL came through and recorded for my album as if it was a lead single for their own was absolutely flattering to me. Even now, three months later I sit back and kinda shake my head at that because as a producer, I feel like I’ve done my job, which is bringing the best out of the artists you work with… and vice versa of course.

How did your connection to Phonte and Nicolay, Foreign Exchange, develop?

It came directly through Phonte who I met back in 2005. Right after I finished working on the “If She Breaks Your Heart” record for Leave It All Behind, Phonte kept telling me that when FE goes out on the road to tour the album, he wanted to include me. I ended up pulling together my kats from here in DC to complete the full band and about a year and a half later, we were all on stage in NYC playing the first of many FE shows to come.
I must say as a listener I am in love with SunStorm. Which tracks did you enjoy creating the most? Which tracks have the most stories behind them? I really can’t say which ones I enjoyed the most… I have too much of a personal connection with every last track on the album. But the most involved story would DEFINITELY be “All Is Well With Love” with Chantae Cann. We went through so many changes behind that song that it almost didn’t even make the album… As a matter of fact, I wrote about this in my blog.

It is obvious the talent is within you down to the pinkies… with that have talent will travel… is there anyone that you would love to collaborate with musically to see what comes to fruition?

I’ve always wanted to work with The Roots in some form or fashion. Whether in the studio, or performing with them on stage… That would be a dream come true. i would love to work with Faith Evans, Adriana Evans just to name a couple. And another dream of mine would be to sit in the studio and create with Rod Temperton… THAT would be crazy.

Chapter 3 verse 5 of which Book?

Ahhhh, you’re getting too deep… ’35′ was my uniform number in high school and college when I played baseball. So it isn’t a particular chapter and verse in the Bible, although it may have looked better if it worked out like that huh?

Who is coming out of the “D” that we need to check for?

Keep your eyes open for Monica Blaire, who appears on SunStorm (“MakeLuv2Me”), Nick Speed, Big Tone, T. Calmese (Illite of Subterraneous), Asylum 7, who I did the Overdue Process album with in 2009, and Finalé.

I was chatting it up with a friend in NY who mentioned you name and GRAMMY in the same sentence. How do you feel about that?

I’ll tell you this, I’ll be playing it cool now and give some answer like, “Well, It’s an honor… a blessing, blah, blah, blah…etc.” Which it IS…. BUT, if this album happens to get nominated for a GRAMMY, I may lose it…. I can’t lie.

If you are in New York on Sat Oct 23, 2010 at 7:00 PM it would BEHOOVE you to make that move to the CMJ Music Marathon ” Authenticity” Release Concert at B.B. King’s Blues Club. Zo! will be with The Foreign Exchange, Darien Brockington, Chantae Cann and special guests!

‘SunStorm’ Earns Two 2010 SoulTracks Nominations

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Earlier today, the finalists were announced for the 2010 SoulTracks Readers’ Choice Awards and after narrowing down each category from 20 entries/per, left standing among the finalists for Song of the Year with “Greatest Weapon Of All Time” (feat. Sy Smtih) and Independent Album of the Year with SunStorm!

If you would like to vote for these categories, here are the official rules via SoulTracks.com:

Voting ballots will be sent out by email on Thursday, October 21st. You must be a SoulTracks email subscriber to receive a voting ballot. If you aren’t a subscriber, just sign up at the top left side of this page. It’s FREE! Folks who sign up after October 21st will receive their ballots within 24 hours.

The awards will be broadcast on Tuesday, December 7th at 8:00pm!


I’m pretty excited as I have never been nominated for anything in my musical career. So to even be recognized for the hard work that we all put forth toward this album and its songs is an honor. Hopefully, these nominations are the first of many to come… Thank you for supporting!