Lisabel & Drummer Giuseppe team up for Jazz/Hip-Hop collaboration
Mar My Mind is an upcoming collaborative single by London based, Italian born drummer Giuseppe Grondona, singer songwriter Lisabel and keyboardist, producer Nikola Kovačević.
The song was initially produced by Giuseppe Grondona who used looped samples to give a hip hop, neo soul feel to the composition. He then recorded drums and sent the draft to London based singer songwriter Lisabel, a good friend who he collaborated with in the past for her cover of the jazz standard The Way You Look Tonight / Will Stay in My Heart. Lisabel toplined and wrote lyrics for the track, talking about her own experience.. A hardship in love that turned her relationship into something even stronger, more intimate and pure. Nikola Kovačević, a long time friend and collaborator, was then approached to record keys, bass and to produce the track, mix and master it. Stylistically the song was inspired by the 3 artists’ shared love for Hip Hop Jazz and Neo Soul, being heavily influenced by artists such as Dilla, Robert Glasper, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, The Roots..and so on.
But who’s Giuseppe?
From Bari in southern Italy, Giuseppe graduated in drums and percussion at the Conservatory of Music when he was 21 years old. He performed as a contemporary percussionist at New York University and in Paris, and has toured and recorded as a drummer throughout Europe. In the UK he has performed with Bosco De Olivera (Airto Moreira, Sade,Terry Callier, Hamish Stuart, Kate Bush), Femi Temowo (Wynton Marsalis, George Benson, Amy Winehouse), Simon Carter (Jamiroquai), Svetlana Vassileva (Moby), Annabel Williams (X Factor, Britain’s Got Talent), John Wheatcroft (Carl Parmer) and Andrew McKinney (James Taylor Quartet). In 2009, Giuseppe played with the band performing in the movie ‘Nine’, inspired by Federico Fellini’s ‘8½’, and directed by Rob Marshall. More recently, he’s performed in Los Angeles in two prestigious and international music events, “Thursday Night Vibe” and the “Los Angeles International Indie-Music/Film Summit”, in London at the Ealing Jazz Festival and Vortex jazz club with his family band the Maurizio Grondona Group. As an educator he has taught at Drumtech (2006), Tech Music School (2009) and since 2012 at BIMM London where he is currently Lead Lecturer.
Remember of Lisabel? Look how well she grew in the London music scene:
In 2020 Lisabel released her debut album ‘A Work of Art’, a collection of 14 tracks all written by
herself and co-written with London based keyboardist and producer Nikola Kovačević.
The album premiered in CLASH magazine and received praise from publications around the world.
In August 2022 Lisabel released her funk, synth based and soul infused track ‘Flor de Louis’
garnering positive reviews and support from the likes of Variance Mag, Meral Mag, Atwood Magazine,
Noctis, Ear Milk and others.
In March 2023 Lisabel released her latest single ‘Keep Me Afloat’, an experimental, soul and
electronic piece driven by an emotional and intimate storytelling that touches the themes of mental
health struggles and life’s burdens. The single received praise from the likes of Notion, Earmilk,
GoingSolo and others. The video of the single won 2 Best Music Video Awards and has been officially
selected by 6 film festivals.
Lisabel has had a chance to play in some of London’s most renowned venues such as The Half Moon,
Pizza Express Jazz Club (Soho and Chelsea), O2 Academy Islington, 606 Jazz Club, The Workshop &
Roadtrip, The Water Rats, Novikov Lounge, Jak’s Chelsea, The Ned London, The Savage Garden, Primo
Bar, The Rocksteady , The Spice of Life, The Bedford Balham, Next Door Records and Signature Brew.
