Royal Albert Hall Young Producers to Present 'Soul Garden' Event in April

Through the Young Producers programme, the Royal Albert Hall will present Soul Garden, an evening of live music, DJs, spoken word and games which celebrates the need to live in the moment. This one-of-a-kind event, which takes place across the Hall’s Elgar Room and North Circle Bar on Saturday 5 April, will feature poets Chidera and Remmel Oduro-Sanniez, jazz funk outfit Kolakale Kolective, DJs GRACE and Saige Sounds, and singer-songwriter Neya. Soul Garden will be hosted by Balamii and Voices Radio Regular Ella-Rose.

The line-up, which was curated by the Young Producers, explores different soulful artforms which aim to release dopamine, create an energised space and allow people to relieve stress. Soul Garden will also highlight the need to reconnect with community and nature by transforming the Hall’s 200-capacity Elgar Room venue and North Circle Bar into the renamed spaces ‘Soul Garden’, ‘Backyard’, and ‘Greenhouse’.

Rising Southeast London singer-songwriter Neya will headline the event. Her music reflects her experiences and emotions to create a soulful RnB style that is reminiscent of HER, Jhene Aiko and Aaliyah. Meanwhile, opening the night is neoteric jazz, funk and soul six-piece Kolakale Kolective. The group are renowned for their spontaneous live performances, providing high energy jam sessions blending multiple genres such as jazz fusion and blues to create a collage of powerful music in the moment.

DJs on the night include Balammi and NTS Radio regular Saige Sounds, who will be closing the night, alongside afrobeat and soukous specialist GRACE, who is performing from 7pm. Saige Sounds bridges the worlds of jazz, soul, funk, deep house, and broken beat to craft immersive sets that celebrate both music archives and contemporary innovation, while the London-based GRACE’s sets are dedicated to showcasing the musical contributions of artists from West and Central Africa.

Focussing on topics like social injustice, spoken word artist Chidera Ikechukwu will be highlighting political movements that matter to her most, conveyed through her poetry. The Leeds-based writer and actor has also created and produced her own open mic poetry events in West London. Actor, priest and poet Remmel Oduro-Sanniez is also performing on the night. Remmel, who also goes by the names Remzz and R3, sees the world from many different perspectives, writing poems that are reflective, with a whimsical twist and youthful energy. The South London performer channels the different dimensions of life that he immerses himself in and pours that into his onstage performances.

A lover of soul, RnB, and jazz, the evening’s host Ella-Rose is a radio presenter for Balamii and Voices Radio, having previously produced Rinse & Kool FM.

The Royal Albert Hall’s Young Producers are a collective of young people, brought together to collaboratively produce an event over six months, as part of the Hall’s Engagement programme. The programme highlights the Hall’s commitment to investing in talent and nurturing the artists and support staff of the future as part of their imperative to be a force for good.

This year, the Young Producers felt driven to create a space of respect, curiosity, creativity, innovation and playfulness to counter ‘hustle culture’ that so many working creatives face today. With the cost of living intensely rising in the UK and across the world since 2022, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to take a moment to enjoy life. Soul Garden is the culmination of music genres and performance which invites attendees from all backgrounds and ages to unplug their mind, create, and unwind.

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