Joshua Idehen

Joshua Idehen brings his hybrid of spoken word, jazz inflections and electronic textures to O2 Academy Bristol on 7 November 2026. British with Nigerian roots, he has spent over a decade building a practice at the crossroads of performance poetry and contemporary music, first spotted with the trio Benin City before multiplying collaborations across the UK jazz and club spheres. On stage, his delivery is clear-cut and rhythmic, driving narrative and cadence with the same weight: everyday scenes, social angles and more intimate fragments flow over supple electronics, house or broken beat pulses, and arrangements that keep a live, jazz-informed edge.

This Bristol date folds in chapters from recent projects like Learn To Swim, made with Swedish producer Ludvig Parment, and the 2024 EP Mum Does The Washing, alongside echoes of his routes through bands such as Sons of Kemet and The Comet Is Coming or producers like Daedelus. The set treats text as an instrument, letting voice, groove and improvisation trade places without separating the spoken word stage from the energy of a concert or a club. Special guests join for the night.