Jalen Ngonda: Doctrine of Love Tour with Brooke Combe
Thalia Hall, 1807 S Allport St, 60608 Chicago Kort
þri. 10.11.2026 20:00
Jalen Ngonda honours soul musics rich history while pushing it forward into new territory, an artist whos both archivist and explorer, a disciple of the greats actively shaping the future of music. Having spent the last three years growing this new soul vision from small clubs to arenas and festivals across the world Ngonda stands poised to become the new spokesman of authentic soul with the release of his second album Doctrine Of Love.Doctrine Of Love is an instant classic of an album, a long player alive with a confidence and swagger that seals the young singers reputation as not only the spiritual heir of souls great leading men but a one-off songwriting talent stepping far out from the shadows of his artistic ancestors. The title track Doctrine Of Love sets both the emotional tone and musical template for the rest of the album, I wrote that track when I was trying to do anything to get out of the studio remembers Ngonda. I was listening to a lot of James Brown at the time and that was an inspiration - Doctrine to me was a word no-one ever uses, I took it to be like a certificate, the Certificate of Love - look, I think maybe I meant doctorate, but we wrote it and recorded it and now its a whole thing. The Doctrine of Love is multi-faceted of course - yes, it can be a cool word that fits the song, it can be a code, a philosophy, words to live by, words to love by, words to write some classic music by. I just write the song, Ngonda enthuses, the listener can interpret it however they want.The difference that makes Jalen Ngonda a pioneer rather than a disciple of this soul doctrine is he lives it 100%. He has an insatiable vinyl digging habit, searching for records wherever he goes in the world. His grandmother gave him a shitload of Stax and Motown 45s as a teenager and that gave him the bug. I listen almost exclusively to music from the 60s, he enthuses. The 50s, the 40s. Pretty much nothing past about 1972. Records do sound slightly better on an analogue system, but its more of a behavioural thing with me. This extends to his effortlessly classic style, most of it is quite retro at the moment, he admits, that old skool thing. Who knows, soon I might be dressing in baggy jeans and sneakers, Ive kind of been feeling that, then the month after I might be dressing from the 1940s. On stage I dress in 1950s clothing because I want to wear something slick when Im singing a slick song. The way he conducts himself on stage is an extension of this, the model of gentlemanly charm and grace, as if hed had a crash course from the legendarily rigorous Motown charm school. Hes a 21st century modern spirit questing for vintage authenticity and the walking embodiment of a classic soul gentleman, a Marvin Gaye for the Discogs era.
Flytjendur
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Jalen N'Gonda
Born in Maryland, USA, Jalen NGonda chose the city of Liverpool as the place in which he would flourish as a musician. It was at the age of 11 he began getting into music, inspired by his father's collection of jazz, hip-hop, and soul records.
Since moving to Liverpool Jalen has been playing gigs across the UK and beyond. Two years later Jalen is selling out headline shows in Germany, UK, and Switzerland, is breaking into Spotify's Viral Charts and is supporting touring acts such as Laura Mvula, Martha Reeves and Lauryn Hill at the Montreal Jazz Festival.
His debut EP is due in early summer 2018.
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Brooke Combe"I can walk into those rooms full of established male musicians and not apologise for being there. Fuck that!” At 23 years of age, Scottish newcomer Brooke Combe is ready to call time on the accepted order of things, interrupting indie with an unapologetic attitude and a formidable roster of songs. A collection she has honed through a year of relentless gigging, each track on her forthcoming mixtape has its heart in a long lineage of funk and soul, a retro sound that has earnt her endorsement from the likes of the BBC, Rolling Stone UK, The Skinny and NME. It's a style that could easily come across as mere pastiche, but from the very first note of her rich vocal, there is no doubt that Brooke is carving her own path. “For me, it’s about getting every tune I have done so far out of my head,” explains Combe. “This mixtape is a little bit about the naivety of my adolescent years, but it’s also a bit of a 'who is Brooke Combe', showing people all the different sides to my music. So many people have been coming to the shows now, they've been consistent and loyal. I want them to have what they've been hearing live and to see the development so far.”
