Badinba, San Simon

Inspired by folkloric rhythms of the Afro-Caribbean diaspora, Badinba creates modern music that is firmly rooted in tradition. Co-founders Adam Hinz and Ian LeBlanc met in 2007 while studying with percussion legend John Amira. They were later joined by Chris Mariner, a guitarist with extensive experience in NYC's jazz and experimental-music scenes, and bass player Evan Ubiera, whose multi-instrumental expertise spans the musical spectrum from Dominican gagá to heavy metal to Afrobeat. Badinba's sound is completed by Mónica Ortiz Rossi, who infuses modern Latin soul vocals with the sounds of her Dominican-American upbringing, and Jadele McPherson, a renowned akpwon(ceremonial singer in the Cuban Lukumí religious tradition) and self-professed hip-hop head.