Natti Love Joys

Based in North Carolina, Natti Lovejoys formed around bassist Jati Allen and his wife Marla who plays keys and sings with the band. Jati was born and grew up in Jamaica. He played with a number of bands perhaps most notably The Congos with whom he traveled to France and later to New York. It was in New York that he met Marla. She had moved to New York from London with her family when she was a teenager. She later formed a singing trio with her cousins. It was while she was in a studio with the trio that she first heard Jati playing. She decided then and there that she wanted to play with him. In the second half of this session, the music is from their daughter Bemi who has her own band with whom she has a residency every Thursday evening throughout November in the Cherry Street Tavern downtown.