SMOOTH JAZZ & CHILL NEWS BITS: MATISYAHU, KEM, NAT KING COLE, MALO, KID CREOLE & THE COCONUTS, GEORGE BENSON, BRIAN CULBERTSON & MORE

JAZZ CHILL NEWS BITS…Rising reggae superstar Matisyahu has joined the lineup for this summer’s Lollapalooza, which will be held Aug. 4-6 in Chicago’s Grant Park……….R&B and popular smooth jazz crossover artist KEM’s sophomore CD, KEM Album II has crossed over and reached #5 on the Pop Albums chart and remains on the R&B Albums chart, and it has been certified gold after only two weeks of release. His hit single I Can’t Stop Loving You was designated Radio & Records’ and Billboard’s #1 Adult R&B Record of the Year for 2005. Nearing Platinum selling status, KEM Album II was self-produced by the multi-talented artist, and is the highly-anticipated follow-up to KEM’s 2004 certified gold debut, Kemistry, which delivered the sleeper hit, Love Calls. The single stayed in the Top 20 of radio airplay for more than a year. KEM is currently touring and his remaining tour dates include: San Diego, CA (March 23); Anaheim, CA (March 24); Los Angeles, CA (March 25); Oakland, CA (March 26); and Seattle, WA (March 28)……….Capitol/EMI is set to release The Very Best Of Nat King Cole on May 2. The CD will include 28 remastered Cole classics, from his 1940’s cuts with his Trio to his 1960’s solo singles. The new anthology also includes a previously unreleased version of Morning Star as it was originally recorded for the classic film, St. Louis Blues. Cole recorded nearly 700 songs for Capitol and during his 30-year career and he had more than 150 charted singles on Billboard’s Pop, R&B and Country charts. In January 2005, Nat King Cole made his first return in 40 years to Billboard’s Top 50 with the #41 debut of The World Of Nat King Cole CD. Cole’s last album to reach the Top 50, Unforgettable, peaked at #30 in 1965……….Thump Records will release a live set for Malo called Malo Live on April 25……….Several upcoming UMe imports include The Very Best Of African Soul by Manu Dibango and Wonderful Thing by Kid Creole And The Coconuts (both due on May 2)……….June 13 will see the release of The New Boss Guitar Of George Benson by George Benson……….Upcoming concert dates for smooth jazz pianist Brian Culbertson include: Washington, DC @ the Warner Theatre (March 24); Wyomissing, PA @ the Sheraton Reading Hotel Ballroom (March 25); Wyomissing, PA @ the Berks Jazz Festival (March 26); Jacksonville, FL @ the Jacksonville Jazz Festival (April 8); and Destin, FL @ the Seabreeze Jazz Festival at Seascape Resort (April 22).