Yazz Ahmed

Name, where are you from?
Yazz Ahmed, although my real name is Yasmeen Ahmed. I’m British-Bahraini. I was born in London but moved to Bahrain with my mum when I was a few months old to live with my Bahraini family. We stayed there until I was nine and then returned to South London.

Describe your style in three words?
Rude girl chic.

What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
Kenny Wheeler’s 80th birthday concert at the Royal Academy of Music in 2010. Kenny was performing with his big band, playing many of my favourite pieces. The music is exquisite and Kenny’s trumpet playing was so fragile, but beautiful. I found myself sobbing uncontrollably throughout the concert. It was very embarrassing and I’d like to apologise to the people sitting nearby!

If you could be on the line up with any two artists in history?
Weather Report - the energy, sound and interplay between the musicians and the excitement they create, all make me feel like dancing. Björk - she’s a genius composer, so inventive. I love the blend of her voice set against the sound-worlds she creates.

Which subcultures have influenced you?
Chav - that was me when I was growing up. It was the look in my area of London and I adopted that style because I was sporty I suppose. I ran for Herne Hill Harriers in Tooting as a teenager and so I already liked sportswear. The dress sense in Bahrain was very smart and conservative, so I guess this was a way of rebelling and trying to find my identity.

If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
Picasso - because he thought so outside the box and completely transformed what was considered to be art at the time. I actually studied art at sixth form college and always found his work fascinating. I would like to ask him about his creative process, wondering if his wisdom might inspire new approaches for me when I write music.

Of all the venues you’ve been to or played, which is your favourite?
Kölner Philharmonie - I played there with my quartet in 2019. It’s such a beautiful space - a wooden underground amphitheatre. The acoustics are so warm, reverberant, perfect for the trumpet, and even though the hall is massive, it feels quite intimate.

Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
Terry Brown - trumpet player, record producer and my granddad. He’s the reason I play the trumpet. He was a successful jazz musician in the 1950s, playing with John Dankworth, Ronnie Scott and Tubby Hayes. He then went on to have a career as a record producer working for Pye and Phillips Records.

Yazz Ahmed recently released her new EP 'Polyhymnia Remixed' - an electronic reworking of her award-winning 2019 jazz album 'Polyhymnia'. Visit www.yazzahmed.com for more.