Ezra Collective's #1 Album in UK Makes History; NPR, Billboard + More Praise

Wanted to share a major update on Ezra Collective: Their new LP Here Because of Hope has officially debuted at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart, marking the band’s first-ever UK No. 1 album. The milestone also makes Ezra Collective the first UK male jazz group to earn a No. 1 studio album. The record additionally topped the UK’s Vinyl Albums, Physical Albums, Albums Sales, Independent Albums and Jazz & Blues Albums charts.

The No. 1 caps an extraordinary few weeks for the London five-piece. Rolling Stone UK put Ezra Collective on its cover, calling them “one of Britain’s biggest bands,” DIY named them the cover stars of its September issue, and Jazzwise featured them on their October 2026 cover. Bandleader Femi Koleoso also took over The Guardian’s Saturday magazine Culture section, guest-editing an expansive package centered on hope, Black British culture, and the communities that shaped the group. He also sat down with Billboard, who described the new work as their “most complete album to date,” to discuss the band's growth from London youth clubs through Mercury Prize and BRIT wins to their current global rise.

Femi also recently joined Men in Blazers for a deeply personal conversation about how football has shaped his identity and sense of belonging. He reflected on growing up as a lifelong Arsenal fan in North London and what the idea of “Black Arsenal” has meant to him culturally.

“A swirl of genres, everything from hip hop to Afrobeat to reggae, calypso and soul”

— NPR Music

“The Latest in a Series of Flash Points for the Unstoppable Ezra Collective… British National Treasures”

— Pitchfork

“Ezra Collective’s Most Complete Album to Date… Encapsulates Everything that the U.K. Music Industry Should Be Championing”

— Billboard

“One of Britain’s biggest bands”

— Rolling Stone UK

“Traverses Black diasporic sound traditions”

— Vulture

“A Performance Ethic That Is Among the Most Engaged and Consciousness-Raising in Modern Jazz”

— OkayAfrica

“An extremely easy-to-love album… a heartfelt marvel”

— FLOOD

“Music so irresistible you can imagine it as the soundtrack to your life”

— KCRW

“Uplifting and Full of Life” ★★★★

— Financial Times

Out now via Partisan Records, Here Because of Hope traces the movement of Black people, music and culture from West Africa through the Caribbean and ultimately to London, bringing Afrobeat, reggae, salsa, grime, UK jazz, funky house and more into the band’s ever-expanding world. Pa Salieu, Lila Iké, Leona Lewis and Libianca feature across the record, with Letitia Wright narrating its three movements. 

Ezra Collective bring the album to North America this November, including The Regent Theater in Los Angeles on November 14 and Webster Hall in New York on November 18.

STREAM HERE BECAUSE OF HOPE | PRESS PAGE

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