From Saxophonist To Racing Car Driver And Beyond

YolanDa Brown is a hyper-slashie. She is a saxophonist, composer and broadcaster. Even musically, she fuses jazz, soul and reggae - inventing the "posh reggae" genre. But the vivacious Brit is also serious about motor racing.

"I just love it!" Brown raves. "It's such a wonderful experience of being there in the car, out on the track, in control. There's something about it that is very addictive - you just wanna get back out there." Brown is returning to Australia for her first full national tour with a full band through March, coinciding with Melbourne's Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, "Which is a dream come true for me," she says. Brown enthuses about 2017's exclusive week-long residency at Melbourne's feted jazz club Bird's Basement, recalling the "energetic" audiences. "They were up, they were singing, they were dancing - and exactly what I wanted and what I needed. So I'm looking forward to coming back - no pressure now!"

Born in Barking, London, to Jamaican parents, Brown picked up several instruments (piano, violin, drums), but stuck with the saxophone primarily because it was "portable". "For me, there was a big difference with using your voice [voicing techniques] to create the sounds - it felt emotive and very therapeutic, actually." In the '90s the saxophone was sadly deemed unfashionable, but that changed with the 'sax house' micro-trend in clubdom (and Detroit's Norma Jean Bell). "I don't think people have a love/hate relationship with it like Marmite - I don't know if you have Marmite in Australia?" Brown ponders. Today, while joking about the saxophone's old association with "the Muzak in the lift", Brown passionately defends the versatile, iconic instrument. "I think it's great that now it's not just an element of jazz. You are used to hearing the saxophone everywhere, which is lovely because then you turn up at, like, a hip hop show, or if you turn up to a soul show as a guest - it's not out of place at all. Rock, the same. It's not out of place anywhere, in any genre... It's a great feeling, a great experience, playing the saxophone. It's really gonna go with everything."

Largely self-trained, Brown didn't plan on becoming a professional musician. Initially, she followed a scholarly path, completing master's degrees in Management Science and Social Research Methods (Brown now has an honorary Doctorate of Arts from the University of East London). In fact, Brown gigged to fund her studies. But, with her popularity as a performer soaring, she reevaluated her vocation. Brown won the MOBO Best Jazz Act award twice consecutively. In 2012, she released a stellar debut album, April Showers May Flowers, independently.

After 2016's extensive Reggae Love Songs tour, for which she was joined by the likes of Destiny's Child singer Michelle Williams, Brown developed what she's branded "posh reggae": a hybrid of jazz, soul and reggae. Last June, Brown unveiled an upbeat second LP, Love Politics War, exploring this "new direction" with co-producer Rick Leon James. She curated prestigious guests including vocalists Raheem Devaughn and The Floacist (of Floetry), and musicians Casey Benjamin (Robert Glasper Experiment), Bill Laurance (Snarky Puppy) and Jon Cleary. Above all, the project was shaped by Brown's travel experiences amid global volatility. "I think it's very important to be open to those different creative urges, or creative influences, that might come along." She funded the album with a PledgeMusic campaign, ingenuously offering a 'Car Race Experience' package.

The industrious Brown has parlayed music into an impressive side-career in broadcasting, in both television and on the radio (she has two in-flight entertainment programs with British Airways). "It's amazing," she says. "I just love how, being a musician, you get to meet so many amazing people and you get to have so many wonderful experiences, that you do find that you end up doing a lot of things! It opens you up to different industries, which I love."

Brown is working towards acquiring her licence as a racing car driver, having put it aside when her daughter was born four years ago. "I'm getting back on the track now when we have a gap between the tour dates." And she's writing a series of children's books. Ask Brown about her future aspirations and she nominates another adventure. "Probably flying?" she laughs. YolanDa Brown, pilot - why not?