Backstage at Manchester’s New Century Hall, British jazz favourites Kokoroko were getting ready to take to the stage as part of NTS Radio’s Keep Walking Live (discover more on the weekend here).
Between grabbing some food and warming up before the show, the London-based seven-piece, originally born out of a trip to Kenya around a decade ago, sat down with Service95 to talk about how their chemistry as artists has become central to their sound.
That onstage connection didn’t happen overnight. It has been built over years of playing together, while learning how to give each other space – knowing when to step forward, hold back and let each member’s sound shine.
“We’ve done a lot of work to really understand each other in that sonic sphere. Allowing each other to have their moments and flourish,” says Noushy Nanguy, who plays trombone and sings in the band.
It’s this sense of togetherness that has helped shape the energy Kokoroko is known for. Their music feels organic; collaborative. The band released their debut album, Could We Be More, in 2022, and have continued to evolve both as individual musicians and as a collective ever since. Their music has soundtracked countless house parties, late-night sessions and slow mornings, while tracks like Abusey Junction (which first appeared on a Gilles Peterson compilation in 2018) have become firm favourites far beyond the jazz scene.
Watch the full video below for a glimpse behind the scenes, to discover what really happens backstage with Kokoroko.
