Yussef Dayses is one of the UK’s most innovative and exciting young producers and drummers. He has been playing jazz since he was a child. He is best known for his work in United Vibrations with his brothers and as part of the electrifying duo Yussef Kazaal. His father bought him his first drum set at age 4. Yussef, who was born and raised in South East London was an avid drummer as a child. His father, a New York bass player in the 1970s, brought home a wealth of jazz vinyl. Yussef and Kareem would spend hours listening to their dad’s music. He was only able to get formal jazz lessons from this point until he was ten when he studied with Billy Cobham, Miles Davies’ drummer. Yussef believes this was the most important thing that he did for his development. Many of Yussef’s classmates were aspiring rappers at school. Yussef says that hip-hop and grime heavily influenced his output. “That same energy and those diverse flows, I put into the drums.” His Jamaican father’s collection of reggae, his late mother’s love for country and the Beatles, as well as his brother Ahmad’s production of jungle tracks, Yusef states that there was “good music in every room”. This breadth of taste combined with sounds from travelling (notably Senegal) makes Yusef’s exhilarating mix of sounds. He would put these diverse influences into a live setting as a youngster. At ten years old, he was performing shows with his brothers and Wayne Francis II, a rock-influenced spiritual jazz band. Yussef Kamaal was then born in 2015. This made him a must-know artist in the UK. Their 2016 album, “Black Focus”, was a duo with Kamaal Williams from London. It combines the best of both the US and UK musics with funk-infused beats. The album was certified silver and won the Jazz FM award for Best Breakthrough Artist in 2017. Both groups have contributed to Yussef’s explosive, fast-fire live presence through their energetic shows. He refers to it as his alter-ego, the “beast” that takes control when he plays. After 2018’s ‘Love Is The Message,’ Yussef’s first solo song, which he self-released on Cashmere Thoughts, 2019 will be his busiest year. Yusef is currently working on a solo album. He says that being solo allows him to be uncompromising in his choices of sounds and collaborators. Yussef is embracing that freedom and working on several projects as a producer, player and musician with some of the most prominent names in UK jazz and beyond. Yussef’s work is a testament to his versatility and breadth. He sound-tracked and curated the Louis Vuitton Paris Men’s Fashion Week dinner show in January. Yussef collaborated with Virgil Abloh, Benji B, and others. This is an exciting time, with many more of the soaring, epic and intricate soundscapes that are unique to this time. He says that drumming is a method of communicating and expressing oneself. Yussef Dayses will be leading the discussion in 2019. from https://primarytalent.com
