Prince's Legacy Honored At Annual MojaMoja Grammy Brunch

Photos of the Prince Tribute taken by Vickey Ford of SneakShot for Okayplayer.

February 11th, 2017 in Hollywood: The Grammys are approaching and every artist, label and media group have descended, throwing showcases and parties for the past few days. With that in motion, I attended the 9th Annual MojaMoja charity brunch, which has established itself as a mainstay thanks to the organizer's (including KCRW’s Garth Trinidad) ability to book acts who will be Grammy nominees in years to come. This year’s round-up have been selected with the purpose of paying tribute to the late, great Prince and has brought in a crowd of passionate fans still feeling his passing as if it were yesterday.

The event, usually held in SBE’s large show venue, Avalon, was scaled down and moved to the smaller upstairs section, Bardot, to offer intimacy in the tradition of Prince’s legendary house parties and after show performances. Huddled in the two rooms, people quickly filed in as DJ Rashida, the Purple One’s personal tour DJ, ran through a blend of familiar classics and rare unreleased songs. The menu for the afternoon's buffet was curated by singer turned pro chef, Kelis, and offered Cajun Salmon skewers, kale + quinoa salad, baked yucca and a spinach and roasted pepper frittata.

Past performers have included Janelle Monàe and Anderson .Paak well before fame struck, as well as legends such as Sly Stone and Mavis Staples who have personally been honored at the brunch. First up to face the daunting task of covering Prince classics was Alex Isley, daughter of Ernie Isley of the Isley brothers. Accompanied by only an acoustic guitar she tackled “I Wanna Be Your Lover,” “The Most Beautiful Girl In The World” and the standout, “The Beautiful Ones”. Second in line was Sidibe, who’s five octave vocal range was cosigned by his majesty as his "Purple Pick Of The Week" on Tidal just two weeks before he passed. Offering a selection of originals, she ended the set with the 1978 Prince ballad “Crazy You”.

The finale was no other than Tamar Davis who spent years with Prince, gaining a Grammy nod along the way for “Beautiful, Loved and Blessed” and more recently reclaimed the spotlight as a contestant on NBC’s The Voice. The powerhouse vocalist, backed by a jazz trio, made the room feel stadium sized as she delivered originals (“The Gift Of Goodbye”), covers (Sam Smith’s “Lay Me Down” & Aretha Franklin’s “Rock Steady”), comedy (her Adele satire “Merlot”) and the grand finale of “Purple Rain”.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the MojaMoja Innovation Fund. You can get more information on the charity and future events at TheMojaMoja.com.

Dominic Painter is a Los Angeles creative with insurmountable skill and aplomb. Follow him (and us!) us on Twitter @DJ_DPainter.