Nastasia Y + Ahmed Moneka Arabic Jazz

About this event

Nastsia Y + Ahmed Moneka – Double Album Release night
7 PM – Doors open for dinner and drinks

8 PM – Nastasia Y

9:30 PM – Ahmed Moneka & Moneka Arabic Jazz

As part of both the 2024 Lulaworld festival and the Small World Music’s 2024 Concert Series, Toronto-based artists Nastasia Y and Ahmed Moneka team up to celebrate their new releases on the Lulaworld Records label.

Don’t miss this special night of Ukranian indie jazz and soul alongside Afro Iraqi Sufi jazz, soul and funk with many surprises and special guests, presented in collaboration with community partners Drom Taberna and Uma Nota Culture.

Nastaia Y launches Kyiv Soul
Nastasia Y is a Ukrainian-born artist in Toronto on a mission to sing to the world about Ukraine, combining jazz, funk, rock, pop, and electronic elements with Slavic folk. Her music mirrors her journey, from being raised in Kyiv to her late father’s folk/protest songs, to Canada’s jazz scene, to the Nastasia Y Band (formerly DoVira) fusing all her influences.

Nastasia has collaborated with artists from Elizabeth Shepherd, to BLISK, to Oleh Skrypka, and is an active volunteer for Ukraine, having traveled to Poland and Ukraine to help those affected by Russia’s invasion. Her album ‘Kyiv Soul’ (May 2024) features Juno and Grammy award nominated musicians, exploring themes of resistance, generational trauma, and ancestral magic.

Ahmed Moneka launches Kanzafula
Drawing on his Afro Sufi music heritage, Ahmed Moneka delivers a joyful and transcendent mix of African grooves and Arabic melodies, informed by funk, soul and jazz. Reflecting on his personal journey from Baghdad to Toronto (arriving as a refugee after an appearance in a movie about gay rights), the actor, artist, activist and his all-star global ensemble draw listeners into an ecstatic celebration of life, exploring love in all its forms alongside nostalgia for one’s home, through original compositions and Middle Eastern classics.

Moneka’s Arabic jazz ensemble, which unites contributors from Iraq, Greece, Turkey, Sudan, Algeria, Syria, and Canada, will tour material from their sophomore full-length album (to be released in May of 2024) across North America, making their European debut in 2024 and 2025.