Travelling from East London to the heart of the West End, Yazmin Lacey's artistry is rich with soulful, Caribbean-rooted pride. With a double bill at Blue Note London, she made a mark on her hometown’s newest jazz venue during its inaugural season.
Yazmin Lacey and band at Blue Note London (November, 2026). Image via Press.
On a crisp Thursday evening in November, Yazmin Lacey commanded the stage at Blue Note London—the highly-anticipated new music venue that opened its doors this September amidst a buzz of jazz-enthused anticipation. Nestled in the heart of Covent Garden, it follows in the footsteps of its global sister branches.
The original Blue Note Jazz Club opened in Greenwich Village, New York in 1981. Since then, new venues have sprung up across the world, from Tokyo to Milan and, last year, to Los Angeles. Now it's London's turn.
The intimate venue is doused in a low-lit dusky blue haze, leaving a feeling of musical sanctity in the air. The stage of Blue Note London has already been graced with the likes of Erykah Badu, Masego, Yussef Dayes and Robert Glasper. With the memory of their performances filling the walls, Yazmin Lacey etched her own name into this flourishing list of star-studded talent.
This was an unforgettable performance for an evolving dreamer, born and raised in East London, now taking on a double performance at one of her hometown's most prestigious new music venues. Humility and gratitude emanated from her.
Lacey's band—uniting drums, percussion, bass, keys, guitar and backing vocals—filled the room with a soft symphony of sound before she walked on stage. Then, with vocals warmed from her earlier performance, she began.
In bold golden jewellery and a beautiful draped black number—"Do you like my dress? It's designer!" she smiled—Lacey held our hands and took us on a journey through her discography.
She opened with the dynamic and soulful jazz sonics of "Where Did You Go?" followed by the striking bass-led earworm that is "Bad Company"—two songs plucked from her 2023 debut album, Voice Notes.
Her voice gradually rose in timber as she found her footing, truly coming alive for "Teal Dreams", Yazmin's favourite song from her sophomore project of the same name. Showcased on Blue Note's stage, Lacey's voice was a fountain of soft soul underpinned by her signature raspy tones. She dipped and dived from feathery head notes to rich low registers dug out from a deep vocal well.
The songstress wore her island roots proudly for performances of "Wallpaper" and "Love Is Like The Ghetto", embellished with an interpolation of Angie Stone's "Wish I Didn't Miss You", which inevitably made the audience light up. She says it herself: "I'm Caribbean, it's in my blood", and perhaps that's why her talent shines so bright in the reggae-soaked corners of her soundscape.
Further highlights came in the form of special guests Maverick Sabre and Tyson joining Yazmin on stage—for an unreleased track and "Water" respectively—as well as the heartfelt performance of "Longest Way Round" with its breathtakingly introspective lyrics.
As the show drew to a close, soundtracked by a powerful performance of "Grace", Lacey's talent hung in the air. Less than two months in, Blue Note already feels like part of London's jazz story, and here, Yazmin Lacey was truly at home. Both are only just getting started.
Stream Teal Dreams below: