Pink Martini feels strongly compelled to aid our friends in Turkey and Syria with their challenging recovery from the devastating 2023 earthquake. $2 from each ticket purchase will be donated directly to selected NGO relief efforts in the region.
In 2016, Pink Martini released its ninth studio album, Je dis oui!, which features vocals from China Forbes, Storm Large, Ari Shapiro, fashion guru Ikram Goldman, civil rights activist Kathleen Saadat, and Rufus Wainwright. The album’s 15 tracks span eight languages (French, Farsi, Armenian, Portuguese, Arabic, Turkish, Xhosa and English), and affirms the band’s 23-year history of global inclusivity and collaborative spirit. In 2018, Pink Martini released a special 20th Anniversary Edition of its first album Sympathique, featuring the band’s iconic arrangement of Ravel’s “Bolero”, now in the public domain and finally reinstated on the album after a 20-year absence. In 2019, Thomas Lauderdale and members of Pink Martini collaborated on a new release with the international singing sensation Meow Meow. This album, Hotel Amour, features guest appearances by Rufus Wainwright, The von Trapps, Barry Humphries (of Dame Edna fame), and the inimitable late French pianist and composer, Michel Legrand. Also in 2019, Pink Martini released two 5-song EPs, each featuring a special guest singer who has been regularly touring with the band since late 2017. Bésame Mucho, with Edna Vazquez singing, features her original powerhouse “Sola Soy” alongside classic Spanish repertoire, like the title track, and “Quizás, quizás, quizás.” Tomorrow features vocalist Jimmie Herrod, a finalist on 2021’s season of NBC’s America’s Got Talent, on a soaring version of the title track (famous from the musical Annie) alongside other repertoire, including the single “Exodus” which has been bringing audiences to their feet at Pink Martini concerts. Both albums feature Pink Martini, and arrangements by bandleader Thomas Lauderdale. During their pandemic hiatus, in 2021, the band release two new digital singles written by Thomas Lauderdale, China Forbes, and producer Jim Bianco, “Let’s Be Friends,” and “The Lemonade Song,” which already has nearly 8 million streams on Spotify alone.
In 2022, the band is celebrating its 28th year of performing with its first full season of global touring since 2019, due to the disruptions brought about by the pandemic. The band is currently at work on a new studio album, due in late 2023, and Thomas Lauderdale and China Forbes will both release side project albums in the first half of 2023.
