Award-winning vocalist and composer Ruth Naomi Floyd draws upon the African American spiritual and gospel roots of jazz. Floyd’s music explores themes of faith, resilience, and human dignity while honouring figures such as Frederick Douglass, Octavius Valentine Catto, and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper.
The Ruth Naomi Floyd Quartet will be performing Music for the Soul at World Heart Beat Concert Hall on Thursday 16 July 2026, with special guest Julian Joseph.
Book your tickets here.
What is the best thing about your show / your favourite thing?
The program brings together sacred reflection and historical remembrance through the expressive language of jazz. Over the past three decades, I have established my voice in the rare intersection of jazz and theology. My music explores themes of declaration and praise while engaging questions of faith, justice and human dignity.
Some of the slickest, most erudite and daring jazz. All About Jazz
What will the audience get out of your show?
Audiences experience an evening of powerful jazz that blends artistry, storytelling and reflection, exploring themes of faith, resilience, justice, and the enduring search for dignity and freedom.
Describe this show in three words
Soulful. Reflective. Daring.
Describe this show or music to someone who may have never been to one of your shows before:
It is a distinctive jazz performance combining original compositions, improvisation and storytelling. Some pieces draw on sacred themes and the African American spiritual and gospel roots of jazz, while others honor historic figures whose lives and legacy illuminate the ongoing struggle for freedom and justice resulting in music that is both adventurous and deeply moving. While the performance is rooted in vocal jazz, we also selected “Other” to reflect the broader musical traditions that inform the program. My music draws from the African American spiritual and twentieth-century gospel traditions that helped shape the foundations of modern jazz and its rich African American musical heritage. The result is a performance where jazz composition and improvisation meet sacred song traditions and historically inspired storytelling.