In the Green Room: Soul II Soul

Soul II Soul has been a music mainstay for the last three decades, gifting us some of the biggest R&B tracks in the late ‘80s and ‘90s. Dialling in from London, Jazzie B OBE from the Grammy-award-winning collective gives us the low-down on their WOMAD set.

You’re playing your first Australian WOMAD this March! What drew you to playing at the festival?

We’ve got a few [international] WOMADs under our belt... it’s a very good festival. What an interesting way to come to Australia via a festival. The last time Soul II Soul played in Adelaide was in 2012!

What can we expect from Soul II Soul’s WOMAD set?

I think a happy face, a thumpin’ bass, for a lovin’ race. One of the reasons why we naturally enjoy that whole scene is because Soul II Soul has always been about being positive.

What’s the difference between playing to a festival crowd and a stadium audience?

[A festival] is quite an eclectic scenario. You rub shoulders with people you wouldn’t ordinarily meet up with. And from a musician’s standpoint, you get to meet other musicians and that community gets more enriched. I very much enjoy [a festival], especially a good one like WOMAD.

You’re heading off on an Aussie tour for a 30th-anniversary celebration of Club Classics: Volume One. Why do you think Soul II Soul’s music has remained so timeless?

That’s why we called [the album] Club Classics! It was the whole challenge in the beginning. The fact that in 2023 we’re still enjoying it is an absolute pleasure. For lack of a better term, we hit the nail on the head with what we were trying to achieve. We’re blessed to be considered timeless