Release date:
October 26, 2018
Buy vinyl:

Vinyl LP pressing. 2018 release. A royal refugee turned soul survivor. On his debut album Free Me, Burundian-born JP Bimeni astonishes with a voice that recalls Otis Redding in his prime whilst resonating with the soul of Africa. A refugee who's been living in London since the early 2000s, Bimeni sings songs of love and loss, hope and fear, with a conviction that comes from the extraordinary experiences life has thrown at him. A descendant of the Burundian royal family, Bimeni fled Burundi aged 15 during the 1993 civil war. Following three attempts on his life - at school he watched as his schoolmates were murdered, he was then chased by motorcycle militia-men and finally poisoned by doctors in hospital - he was given refugee status and fled to the UK where he's remained ever since. Music has provided the solace that Bimeni has needed to move forward with his life: "If I didn't have music I don´t know how I would have survived everything", he says. With it's classic 60s-sounding Motown and Staxinspired grooves the album was written by musical director Eduardo Marti´nez and songwriter Marc Ibarz and Bimeni imbues these tales of love and loss with his tragic experiences making 'Free Me' a deep soul soundtrack to his pained life: "When I sing I feel like I'm cleansing myself: music is a way for me to forget"

Tracklist:
  • 1. Honesty Is a Luxury
  • 2. Same Man
  • 3. Don't Fade Away
  • 4. Stupid
  • 5. Pain Is the Name of Your Game
  • 6. Bangarang (Bonus Track)
  • 7. Better Place
  • 8. Madeleine
  • 9. I Miss You
  • 10. Free Me
  • 11. Moonset

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