Unsurprisingly, the top artists leading the GRAMMY nominations this year are all R&B female artists, from SZA to Victoria Monét to Coco Jones. One thing these three women have in common is the quality of work they produce, not to mention their tenacity and the fact that they have more than put in their 10,000 hours to get to this position. 

Coco, in particular, has been in this music game since as a child, when she was also pursuing an acting career. Some have seen the journey and what it has taken for her to get to the current position she is in her career. This year was undoubtedly the year of my R&B girls, and Coco Jones joined that crop when she released her EP What I Didn’t Tell You. Technically released in the latter half of last year, the deluxe of the EP dropped earlier this year, and the project itself was a perfect display of Coco’s talent for those who didn’t already know. 

No further evidence was required, as if five GRAMMY nominations don’t speak for themselves, but Coco’s performance at London’s Koko was a clear example of this talent. The show, previously announced to be taking place at the iconic Jazz Café, was upgraded after an overwhelming demand from fans who were desperate to experience Coco live. 

From the minute Coco took the stage, the crowd was ready. Heaving with R&B energy in the air thanks to the vibes set by AJ Ace and Canadian R&B songstress Savannah Ré, who took the stage before Coco, the energy and vibes were set. Delivery a set mainly comprised of her EP and a special encore of her Disney Channel Original Movie Let It Shine song Me & You Coco wowed the stage with her stunning vocals, top-tier energy and charismatic energy that fans have grown to know and love. 

The only downfall of the show was its length, which ran for just under an hour and went by relatively quickly. As the house lights returned, it felt like it happened in a flash. However, throughout her time on that stage, Coco showed the crowd why she is clearly no longer being overlooked.

Her absence from London is something that she acknowledged, as well as the love and support she has felt across the pond when speaking to the crowd before going into her life-changing hit ICU: “It crazy I flew across many moons and many oceans to have this much support and love and energy and people that know my songs over here. This is so wild, it’s such a blessing, and I could never take it for granted. Thank you guys for rocking with me since I was a little kid.”

Standout moments of the show included her opening number Calibar, the lead single of the EP. Double Back included a section of SWV’s Rain, Crazy For Me, where she interpolated Beyoncé’s Crazy In Love. Whilst the show didn’t consist of much, opting for minimal production two backing dancers who understood and delivered their assignments, the whole thing worked in the intended way: to show off Coco’s talent with no distractions. 

As the show ended and I took it all in after the fact, it’s easy to see that Coco is only at the cusp of what she has to offer in every sense of the word. The show was only the beginning of what’s to come, and I’m tuned to see what 2024 has in store for her and where we go from here.

Follow Coco Jones via @cocojones

Words by Seneo Mwamba