Kassa Overall Jazzes Up '90s Hip-Hop Classics

The Seattle-based jazz musician Kassa Overall released CREAM in September 2025, an album that showcases new, original takes on some of the most classic tracks in 90s rap — from Wu Tang to Biggie and beyond. Overall spoke with KEXP’s Dusty Henry about his work.

"As we're recording these songs, I'm realizing this is actually a response record to my other records," Overall says in the interview. "This is actually a commentary on the whole jazz hip-hop conversation. This is a commentary on my own career."

Overall adds historical context: "Jazz musicians always would take songs that were popular in the public sphere and just use them as materials — not so much a cover, but just as a starting point for the listener. The idea that you remain faithful to the original — maybe some people think about that as a sign of respect to the music, but I don't see it like that. The respect comes from studying the original and then finding your own way to approach it."

Photo Credit: Erik Barden

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