Jazz Master

One of the most sought after Jazz and R & B Drummers of his generation, John “Lil’ John” Roberts has maintained his status in the industry as the ultimate heartbeat. A native of Philadelphia, John quickly became noted as a child prodigy, playing along side Christian McBride and Joey Defranceso …

Throughout his 25 year career, Guy Eckstine has distinguished himself as an A&R executive, artist manager, record producer, digital music pioneer, and musician, with a keen eye for finding and developing new talent. Eckstine has Produced and Executive Produced over 40 records, four of which have won Grammy Awards, including, …

Casey Benjamin is a Grammy Award winning multi-instrumentalist. He is prolific as both a sideman and bandleader. In addition, he has recently worked with artists such as Kris Bowers, Robert Glasper, Derrick Hodge, Lupe Fiasco, Mark Adams, Melvin Gibbs, and Stefon Harris. Benjamin recently spoke with an iRock Jazz interviewer …

Grammy Award-winning Jazz bassist Ben Williams is a forward-thinking musician who crosses easily between straight-ahead, funk, and gospel-influenced jazz. A native of Washington, D.C., Williams graduated from the Duke Ellington School of Music before studying with renowned bassist Rodney Whitaker while earning a B.A. in jazz studies at Michigan State …

DIANNE REEVES is among the pre-eminent jazz vocalists in the world. In her first studio album in five years, Reeves delivers what is destined to become a soul-jazz classic. The album, Beautiful Life, also marks a new relationship with Concord Records —which is not entirely new: Reeves was featured in …

Pianist Kris Bowers is one of the newest and brightest lights on the jazz landscape. Schooled in jazz and classical music, raised amid the rap and hip-hop of the 1990s, inspired by the cinematic power of the great film composers of recent decades, Bowers’ sound – though rooted in traditional …

Jazz vocalist and DC-native Akua Allrich has proven herself to be a musician of extraordinary talent and crowd-moving passion. With finesse and charisma, this vocalist, composer and teacher, has successfully etched out a place for her unique musical expression, electrifying audiences in and around the nation’s capital with sold-out performances. …

What do you call a musical gumbo that recalls the ancestral strut and joie de vivre of the New Orleans’ Tremé, the drama and ecstasy of the church’s wailing floor, and the suited-up sophistication of jazz threaded with the party funk of Parliament? What do you name sounds that hail …

Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band will return to Blue Note Records for the release of Landmarks, the stunning fourth album from the remarkable collective which is led by acclaimed drummer and composer Brian Blade. Landmarks – which is being released in cooperation with the Shreveport, Louisiana based label Mid-City …

On March 11, trumpeter and composer Ambrose Akinmusire will return with the release of “the imagined savior is far easier to paint”, an impressive and expansive new album that broadens the palette of his quintet with the addition of guitarist Charles Altura, the OSSO String Quartet, and vocalists Becca Stevens, …

José James has announced a June 10 release date for his new album, While You Were Sleeping, his fifth studio album and his second album for Blue Note Records. While You Were Sleeping is the follow-up to his widely acclaimed R&B and jazz steeped No Beginning No End, and signals …

Ruth (Producer) and Stephen Hendel (Co-Conceiver/Producer) Ruth’s Broadway credits include: Death of Salesman (Tony®), Clybourne Park (Tony®), FELA! (with Stephen), American Idiot (with Stephen), Driving Miss Daisy, In The Heights (Associate), Red (Tony®), A View from the Bridge, Hamlet, Mary Stuart, All My Sons, 33 Variations, Passing Strange, Legally Blonde, …