After battling stage 4 cancer and grinding for three decades in the trenches of the American music underground, SLAPBAK isn’t just staging a comeback—they’re leading a full-blown funk uprising. Fronted by the indefatigable Jara Harris, this genre-defying powerhouse isn’t looking back. They’re crashing through the noise with live musicianship, fearless fusion, and a rawness the algorithm era forgot.
In a world suffocating under loops, filters, and soulless TikTok hooks, SLAPBAK feels like a lightning bolt of analog truth. Their sound is big. Their mission is bigger. “I didn’t come back to play it safe,” Harris says. “I came back because music is losing its soul. People are starving for something real. That human-to-human spark. That’s what SLAPBAK is bringing—no gimmicks, no auto-tune. Just unapologetic, unfiltered funk.”
That energy caught the attention of Randy Jackson—yes, that Randy Jackson—who immediately joined as the band’s manager after watching a single live clip. “I’ve always believed in Jara and SLAPBAK,” Jackson says. “But what they’ve built now? It’s next-level. It’s time.”
Sonically, SLAPBAK is grounded in funk but blasts past the usual boundaries. It’s rock guitars on fire. It’s gospel soul layered with hip-hop swagger and basslines you feel in your chest. The band itself is as diverse as its sound—Black, white, Latino, male, female, Gen Z to Gen X. On stage, it’s a celebration. Off stage, it’s a movement.
Their upcoming live shows are about to make believers out of skeptics. They hit Ivan’z House in Laguna Beach on May 31, Roscoe’s Famous Deli in Fullerton on June 21, and then back to Ivan’z House on June 28. More dates and a fall headlining tour are on the horizon.
Then there’s the album: Funk Lives Matter. It’s not just a record—it’s a statement. With so many funk legends gone and the genre drifting out of the mainstream, SLAPBAK is sounding the alarm and leading the charge. “This is a love letter and a wake-up call,” says Harris. “We honor the past. But we’re also throwing down the gauntlet for what comes next.” Take a look below at SLAPBAK in action:
They’re already deep into Funk Lives Matter Pt. 2, proving this isn’t a flash of nostalgia—it’s a long game.
For Jara Harris, every beat is personal. After being told he might never speak again, each performance is sacred. “Cancer stripped everything away,” he says. “Now when I hit that stage, it’s not about ego. It’s about healing—for me and the people listening.” Fans lucky enough to catch recent shows call the experience “explosive,” “soul-shaking,” and “like nothing else out there.”
But SLAPBAK isn’t stopping at the stage. They’re launching Funk Lives Matter Live, a nationwide initiative fusing performance with purpose—mentoring young musicians, supporting school programs, and making sure the next generation doesn’t just hear the funk… they live it.
This isn’t some glossy reunion tour. It’s a reckoning. A revival. A reminder that real music doesn’t fade—it waits for its moment.
For SLAPBAK, that moment is now.
REELated:
Sabrina Carpenter releases new Summer anthem, Manchild
