Brooklyn Funk Essentials to Release Eighth Album 'Black Butterfly'

Brooklyn Funk Essentials, the New York-based collective founded by producer Arthur Baker and bassist Lati Kronlund, will release their eighth studio album 'Black Butterfly' on May 15, 2026. The album includes recent singles 'Never Give Up', 'Bust The Bus Stop', and 'Life During Wartime', and has received airplay on BBC Radio 2, Jazz FM, and 6 Music. Produced and co-written by Kronlund, it features vocalists Alison Limerick, Ebba Åsman, and Desmond Foster. The group, known for blending funk, soul, jazz, hip-hop, and Latin music, has surpassed 100 million streams since their 1993 debut on Dorado Records. Their 1995 debut 'Cool & Steady & Easy' included collaborations with Maceo Parker, Tower of Power Horns, and Dizzy Gillespie. The band has toured with James Brown, Parliament-Funkadelic, and Erykah Badu, and their music has appeared in 'The Sopranos', 'Starsky & Hutch', and 'The Blacklist'. A live performance is scheduled for July 2 at New Morning in Paris.