Indianapolis Jazz Kitchen schedules Erykah Badu tribute show featuring Akili Ni Mali in Broad Ripple
A neo-soul repertoire heads to a long-running Indianapolis stage
A live tribute honoring singer and songwriter Erykah Badu is scheduled for Feb. 15 at The Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis, with independent artist Akili Ni Mali set to lead the performance. The event is billed as a catalog-spanning celebration framed through R&B, jazz and hip-hop-influenced arrangements, with a 6:30 p.m. start time listed for the Broad Ripple venue at 5377 N. College Ave.
The Jazz Kitchen, an Indianapolis club founded in 1994, has built a reputation for presenting touring and local acts across jazz and adjacent genres in a listening-room setting. The Badu program fits within a broader regional pattern in which venues and artists assemble concerts centered on influential R&B and neo-soul repertoires.
What is planned for the Feb. 15 performance
Promotional details for the show describe it as a tribute “inspired by Fat Belly Bella,” presenting Badu’s material through a set designed to blend storytelling with grooves rooted in jazz and classic hip-hop. Akili Ni Mali, a California-born and Indianapolis-raised performer, is listed as the featured artist.
Akili Ni Mali’s background includes musical-theater training at Ball State University and recorded releases dating back to 2020, along with additional singles and projects released in the years that followed. Event materials also reference a recent stage portrayal of Nina Simone, positioning the Badu tribute within a broader performance profile that draws on soul and jazz legacies.
Why Badu’s music continues to be a frequent subject of tributes
Badu emerged in the 1990s as a defining voice in neo-soul, a style that blended classic soul approaches with hip-hop-era production and jazz-inflected musicianship. Her prominence helped cement a repertoire that remains widely performed and reinterpreted, particularly in live settings where band-driven arrangements can emphasize improvisation and rhythmic variation.
In the past year, Badu has also been associated with renewed attention to new studio work. In late August 2025, she announced a delay of an album that had been expected to arrive as her first full-length release in about 15 years, after live performances tied to the project.
Key details for attendees
Date: Feb. 15
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Venue: The Jazz Kitchen, 5377 N. College Ave., Indianapolis (Broad Ripple)
Program: Tribute performance centered on Erykah Badu’s catalog, led by Akili Ni Mali
Tribute concerts typically aim to preserve the recognizable contours of well-known songs while leaving room for new phrasing, updated arrangements and ensemble interplay—an approach that has become common in neo-soul repertory nights.