The RH Factor reunion Japan tour took place from August 13 to 16.
These four days coincided with Obon, a traditional Japanese Buddhist festival when ancestors are believed to return to their families.
So, Roy JOINED Aida and the other members of this wonderful “family” band in Japan, a country he had always loved.
“You can’t talk about 21st-century jazz without mentioning the 2003 album Hard Groove,” says Shun Ishiwaka, a rising star on the global jazz drumming scene.
Last year, Ishiwaka performed with Robert Glasper in Tokyo at the “Jazz Not Only Jazz” special live performance. As for Glasper, he consistently references this monumental work with the utmost respect, considering it as a precursor to his own masterpiece, Black Radio.
That’s exactly right, Shun! Hard Groove is genre-busting, which is why it unites people.

Aida Brandes-Hargrove and I – here we are united in person, as family of Hard Groove, Hargrove.