GENA feat. Liv.e & Karriem Riggins

Liv.e and Karriem Riggins meet as GENA, a new two-person project where their jazz-shaped instincts are given free space. Dallas-born and now LA-based, Liv.e has been pushing R&B into new shapes with raw songwriting, grainy textures and a feel for collage. Opposite her, Detroit drummer and producer Karriem Riggins bridges the kit and the sampler, moving easily between live improvisation and beat-making. Together they build an elastic, soul-laced set that drifts between grooves, spoken melodies and rhythmic sketches, letting ideas land in the moment.

GENA stands for “God Energy, Naturally Amazing,” a nod to a certain 90s TV attitude and a clue to the duo’s loose, conversational approach. Expect the pulse of Riggins’ jazz background—honed with artists from Common and J Dilla to The Roots—folded into Liv.e’s singular way of reworking R&B. It’s a dialogue more than a recital: patterns open up, hooks appear and dissolve, and the space between voice and drums becomes the engine of the show.

GENA plays Belgrave Music Hall in Leeds on 23 August 2026.