Give the people an invigorating beat, some swanky sax uplift, and watch the pain melt away. That’s the funky stuff Prince’s former top-choice sax player Candy Dulfer and her band specialize in. The groovin’ Dutch singer-songwriter and saxophonist’s latest album, the aptly titled We Never Stop, is a party platter of stanky jams, silken R&B, jazz, and pop-funk. The good times kick off with the single “Jammin’ Tonight” and the very radio friendly “Convergency,” both featuring special guest, Chic guitarist, producer, songwriter, and three-time Grammy Award-winner Nile Rodgers. We Never Stop is a triumph in the wake of the global pandemic and worldwide racial unrest.

«This is a personal album—it’s personal for everyone because we are struggling with many of the same things,” Candy shares. ”The main spirit of this music is to elevate. It feels like it’s never been more important to not wallow in the hurt and the pain in the world, and let that defeat us. That’s why I called this album, We Never Stop.»

Candy is a solo artist, a songwriter, an in-demand instrumentalist, and a co-writer and collaborator who has worked with some of the biggest names in modern music, including Van Morrison, Maceo Parker, Sheila E., Mavis Staples, Lionel Richie, Beyoncé, Pink Floyd, Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin, and Prince, among many others. She first rose to fame with her high-profile collaboration with Dave Stewart on the worldwide number 1 smash “Lily Was Here.”

Her tenure with Prince may be best remembered by his tongue-in-cheek recommendation in the “Partyman” video: “When I want sax, I call Candy.” Their collaboration continued over the years with many studio sessions, TV show appearances, award show performances, including the Grammy Awards, and concert tours around the globe, including Candy joining Prince’s NPG band as a permanent member for his record-shattering Musicology tour and album.

In addition to her superstar collaborations, Candy is a serious lifelong musician with a robust history as a solo artist releasing albums and touring the world for over 35 years. Since her Grammy-nominated debut, 1990’s Saxuality, Candy has issued 12 studio albums. The combined world-wide sales of her solo albums top 2.5 million copies, and she has had several number 1 hits in the USA. In between her solo albums and her high-profile collaborations, Candy still manages to join Dutch female supergroup the Ladies of Soul for their annual sold-out concerts at the massive Amsterdam Ziggo Dome; she is a headline performer on Smooth Jazz Cruises in the USA and Europe; she is an ambassador for the Dutch ALS Foundation; and Candy was a judge on the Dutch version of X Factor.

At the age of 4, Candy’s destiny unfolded before her eyes, watching jazz heavyweight saxophonist Sonny Rollins. Her father, Hans Dulfer, brought her to the show. Hans is a well-known Dutch jazz saxophonist who, when Candy was growing up, surrounded himself with legends such as Archie Shepp, Dexter Gordon, and guitarist John McLaughlin. Candy began playing sax at the age of 6, and started her own band Funky Stuff at the age of 13.

Candy soaked up music and life lessons from her father, and the iconic musicians he worked with, but Candy also boldly discovered her own voice as a songwriter and an instrumentalist, finding a home in contemporary jazz and pop-funk. She has worked hard to become an artist on her own terms, inspired by the likes of David Sanborn, Steps Ahead, Marcus Miller, Michael Brecker, Maceo Parker, Cannonball Adderley, writer, producer and percussionist Sheila E., and Janet Jackson. “I want to be Janet Jackson with a saxophone entertaining and musically giving,” Candy says.

We Never Stop features vocals from Candy’s rainbow family of a band with lyrics informed by band dialogues and the culture and health crises of the past two years. These include the toll of the pandemic on the music communities and the race horrors that have galvanized a global Black Lives Matter movement. The album bursts open with “Yeah Yeah Yeah,” a percolating dose of vintage funk that recalls P-Funk, Prince, and Average White Band with a feisty outro sax solo.

Legendary Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers (Madonna, David Bowie, Daft Punk, Lady Gaga) appears on the singles “Jammin’ Tonight” and “Convergency.”  “Jammin’ Tonight,” is a bold injection of party pop-funk with a slick jazz overlay that recalls Nile’s 1970’s “Good Times” finery. Here, Candy blows some euphoric jazz-tinged solos, and you can hear pain and struggle melt away in her lyrical virtuosity. The album’s title track funks in the face of adversity. It’s Candy’s salute to all the musicians who have had their livelihoods leveled in the wake of the pandemic—this is a funky as hell anthem of resilience. “Convergency” is a dizzyingly romantic R&B instrumental ballad with jeweled melodic sax work.

After three decades of superstar collaborations and world tours, and chart-topping and high-selling solo career releases, Candy is living proof of the title of her latest album, We Never Stop. Nothing gets in the way of her making funky stuff. Today, her determination and passion remain, but her motivations are different. “These days, I play music to, hopefully, inspire younger people. When I was 12, I didn’t have many female saxophonists to look up to, and I want to be that person for the next generation of musicians,” she says.