Somi Kakoma (known in the jazz world simply as Somi)
Rwandan-Ugandan Grammy-nominated singer, composer, playwright and actor Somi Kakoma (known in the jazz world simply as Somi) has made her Broadway debut starring as the title character of Jaja’s African Hair Braiding.
Jaja’s African Hair Braiding is a new play by the award-winning Ghanaian-American playwright Jocelyn Bioh (School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play) and directed by Obie-award winner Whitney White (Our Dear Dead Drug Lord). It was globally live streamed from November 18 to 19, 2023.
The dazzling world première is set in Jaja’s bustling hair braiding salon in Harlem, New York City, where a lively and eclectic group of West African immigrant hair braiders are creating masterpieces on the heads of neighbourhood women.