Kotoa

Kotoa are South London’s answer to the new wave of UK Jazz. The Brixton five-piece have been widely praised for their unique fusion of political rhetoric, heavy bass lines, trip-hop, and African-inspired jazz. Their debut EP, ‘Earthwise’ (2025) was picked up by Giles Peterson, who invited them to perform live on his radio station, ‘Worldwide FM’. Since then, the EP has collected over 110k streams on Spotify in under 12 months. Riding the wave of their first EP, Kotoa spent the summer of 2026 performing at festivals including Boomtown, Kendal Calling & We Out Here, all whilst preparing for their second full EP, ‘Out of The Dark’ (2026). The band takes its name from the Polynesian island nation of Tonga, the motherland of lead guitarist Memphis Koloi. Translating to ‘all’ or ‘all together’, the name embodies the band’s call for unity, collective consciousness and solidarity in these challenging times.