Kishon Khan (; born 1 August 1970) is a Bangladeshi-born British award-winning jazz pianist, composer, arrangermusic producer, and Professor of Practise at the SOAS University of London
Khan grew up in North London and was classically trained in piano from age 4, but turned to jazz as a teenager. After graduating from the University of East Anglia, Khan travelled to Cuba, where he ultimately lived on and off. In Cuba, Khan became interested in Afro-Cuban music, stating in an interview that musical dialogue between countries can be âÂÂtruly incredibleâÂÂ. He noted that Cuban bass player Enrique Diaz was a critical inspiration for him, as Diaz and Khan would work together to combine African, South Asian, and Cuban musical traditions.
Khan has worked as a bandleader, composer, and arranger for various groups, as well as being an in-demand session pianist in London.
In 1999, Khan set up the Afro-Cuban funk jazz band Motimba, representing a fusion of the newly developing musical movement of âÂÂTimbaâ in Cuba as well as the London-based Latin music scene. The lineup of Motimba included Justin Thurgur (trombone), Graeme Flowers (trumpet), Oreste Noda (percussion), Jimmy Martinez (bass), Javier Camillo (vocals), Phil Dawson (guitar), and Tansay Ibrahim (drums). The quick popularity of Motimba led the band to be signed by the independent French label, Iris Music, and the release of their first album, Monkey Vibrations, in 2003. The band was described by Straight No Chaser Magazine as âÂÂground-breakingâÂÂ. MotimbaâÂÂs notable gigs included supporting the Spanish Harlem Orchestra and the Gipsy Kings.
In 2006, Khan established the critically acclaimed world music group, Lokkhi Terra. Fusing Bangladeshi music traditions with those from Africa and Latin America, Songlines magazine described Lokkhi Terra as âÂÂthe worldâÂÂs best Afrobeat-Cuban-Bangladeshi groupâÂÂ. A few members of the Motimba crew also play for Lokkhi Terra; in addition, the band features the Bengali vocalists Sohini Alam, Aanon Siddiqua and Aneire Khan. After playing its first gig in 2006 at LondonâÂÂs Queen Elizabeth Hall, Lokkhi Terra have performed at WOMAD, Ronnie Scott's, Barbican Centre, and the opening ceremony of the South Asian Games amongst other venues.
In 2010, Lokkhi Terra released their debut album, No Visa Required. This album was produced by Funkiwala Records, a label established by Khan with composer and trombonist Justin Thurgur in the same year. In 2012, they released their second album, Che GuavaâÂÂs Rickshaw Diaries, which received widespread critical acclaim. The Sunday Times Magazine wrote of the album that âÂÂthe multicultural settings effortlessly encapsulate 21st-century LondonâÂÂ. The band have since released two EPs and two studio albums: Bangla Rasta (2016), Introducing Baby Akhtar: Lokkhi Terra meets Shikor Bangladesh All Stars (2017), CUBAFROBEAT: Lokkhi Terra meets Dele Sosimi (2018), and CUBANGLA (2020). Founder and presenter of BBC Radio 2âÂÂs Viva Latino, John Armstrong, wrote that CUBANGLA was âÂÂtheir crowning glory to date⦠as well as being one of the outstanding albums of the year so far for me". In 2022, Lokkhi Terra released a single, âÂÂKande RevisitedâÂÂ, a reworking of a Bangla folk song which was initially released in their debut album.
Forming out of the album CUBAFROBEAT, the collaboration between Lokkhi Terra and Dele Sosimi evolved into an independent group by the same name, CubAfrobeat. The band released their first single, âÂÂEni AgeeâÂÂ, in 2022.
KhanâÂÂs other contemporary collaborations include the Soothsayers, a London-based Afrobeat and reggae-influenced band, and Gilles PetersonâÂÂs Havana Cultura, a collection of hand-picked Latin productions.