There are several 'before and after' key moments in Kamasi Washington’s life. Reading Malcolm X’s autobiography, meetings with Snoop Dogg, trumpeter/conductor Gerald Wilson, Kendrick Lamar among many others. But there is especially a before and an after The Epic. Kamasi truly became Kamasi under this perfectly chosen title. The Californian saxophonist’s life was turned upside down by the worldwide – both critical and popular – success of this triple album (a rare and bold format choice) released in 2015 not by a jazz label but rather through Brainfeeder, the producer Flying Lotus' record company that was more accustomed to abstract hip hop and quirky electro than die-hard jazz. All of a sudden, the name Kamasi Washington was on the lips of music enthusiasts that were not necessarily jazz-inclined. And yet, his epic Epic featured close to three hours of arduous music. Up to that point, only a handful of unshakable jazz junkies knew about and followed the whereabouts of this charismatic thirty-something powerhouse that had worked on Kendrick Lamar’s famous To Pimp A Butterfly. How did this triple album come to be? And how did its creator end up collaborating with artists as diverse as Lauryn Hill and Herbie Hancock, who invited him to take part in sessions for his next album?
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