From London to Lagos: BRIT Award Winner Ezra Collective Take the Groove Global with DANCE, NO ONE'S WATCHING

"Ezra Collective is a truly vital part of the UK jazz scene, making the genre intriguing and accessible. They push it forward by constantly experimenting, improvising, and blending jazz with afrobeats, Latin rhythms, hip-hop, and soul."

—STEREOFOX

Ezra Collective, the groundbreaking UK jazz group, and 2023 Mercury Music Prize winners, return with their third studio album Dance, No One’s Watching (Partisan Records). Written while touring the globe through 2023, the record captures the pulse of dance floors from London to Lagos, Chicago to Sydney. With its blend of jazz, soul, house, grime, and global rhythms, the album is an ode to the sacred joy of movement. The newly released single, “God Gave Me Feet For Dancing” featuring London’s Yazmin Lacey, encapsulates the spirit of the project with its soulful celebration of freedom and community. Directed by Tajana Tokyo (Beyoncé, Janelle Monáe), the accompanying video is a vibrant tribute to the euphoria of dance.

Following the success of their first 2024 release “Ajala,” which electrified audiences during a sold-out performance at the British Library’s Beyond the Bassline exhibition, Ezra Collective continue to bridge London’s eclectic music traditions with universal grooves. Dance, No One’s Watching invites listeners on a journey through a night out in the city, from the anticipation of dusk to the reflective calm of dawn. With guest features from Yazmin Lacey, Olivia Dean, Moonchild Sanelly, and Ghanaian rapper M.anifest, the album radiates both local pride and international reach. Tracks like “Palm Wine” nod to West African highlife, while others channel London’s raw energy, underscoring the group’s ability to unite genres, cultures, and audiences through rhythm and melody.

Ezra Collective are a BRIT Award-winning British jazz group who won the Group of the Year award at the 2025 BRIT Awards, making history as the first-ever jazz act to receive this honor. At the helm is drummer and bandleader Femi Koleoso, whose vision shapes the group’s unmistakable sound. Alongside his brother TJ Koleoso (bass), trumpeter Ife Ogunjobi, saxophonist James Mollison, and keyboardist Joe Armon-Jones, Femi has steered the collective from London youth club rehearsals to global stages, including a career-defining show at Fela Kuti’s New Afrika Shrine in Lagos. Grounded in both community and spiritual purpose, Femi describes dancing as “a God-given ability to shake away the badness of life.” It’s this ethos—joy as resistance, rhythm as unity—that propels Dance, No One’s Watching, cementing Ezra Collective as one of the most vital voices in modern music.

For music, tour dates, and more on Dance, No One’s Watching, visit Ezra Collective’s official site.

Photo Credit: YOUT

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