Olu Dara
Olu Dara, born Charles Jones III in Louisville, Mississippi in 1941, is an African-American trumpeter, cornetist, guitarist and singer. He first became known as a jazz musician, playing alongside avant-garde musicians such as David Murray and Henry Threadgill. With his first album under his own name, 1998's In the World: From Natchez to New York, Dara revealed another aspect of his musical personality: the leader and singer of a band immersed in African-American tradition, playing a tropical mix of blues, folk, and jazz, with tinges of funk, African popular music and reggae. Neighborhoods, with guest appearances by Dr John and Cassandra Wilson, followed in a similar vein in 2001. Rapper Nas (Nasir Jones) is Dara's son. He encouraged his father to record the music he was playing with his band, and guested on a track on In the World. Dara played the trumpet on the track "Life's A Bitch" from Nas's debut album Illmatic in 1994. In 2004, his vocals were featured on Nas's single "Bridging the Gap", from his album Street's Disciple.
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