Dan Bitney, John Herndon, Douglas McCombs, John McEntire, and Jeff Parker make up the band Tortoise. Their sound is hard to pin down; it displays itself as a mixture of jazz, dance, techno, rock, and classical, with not one genre overtaking the other. Their musical identity is fully formed, remaining distinct among other performers. Tortoise creates music to appeal to... read full bio
Toshiko Akiyoshis unique contributions to the jazz world have evolved like falling dominoes through a series of events that started with a piano-loving little Japanese girl in China and brought her to prominence as an unparalleled pianist, composer and leader of the Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra. Toshikos recordings have received a total of 14 Grammy Award nominations. Manchurian-born Akiyoshis interest... read full bio
Total Exposure is a thirteen-piece dance band, who performs three hours nonstop high energy, everything from MoTown, Rock to Beyonce and anything in between. Band leader Lauren Barnett states that the group has been “performing, writing and producing music for as long as [they] can remember… because music, performing and making an audience smile, stirs [their] souls.” Other band members... read full bio
The creator of trap jazz is Chris Moten, a highly regarded musical director and band member for many of the biggest names in the music business, who was born and raised in Atlanta. Moten had an idea for something very special and intimate. It was about pursuing their own unique sound as friends and musicians, not about backing or... read full bio
With the release of their Grammy nominated album Backatown, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue won over legions of new fans in five different continents. Backatown reached Billboard’s magazine’s Contemporary Jazz Chart at No. 1 for nine consecutive weeks. Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue have created a mixture of sounds including funk, hip-hop, and pop. They have tailored this signature sounds... read full bio
Growing up in a household of musicians in the Bahamas gave Troy Anderson his first taste of music. He started playing the trumpet at the age of ten, and before learning about the world of the drum and bugle corps in school, he performed with the Florida Sunshine Band and the Gospel Sounds. He learned how to perform in front... read full bio
True Loves is a Seattle-based funk and soul band. Listening to their music is like strolling down your favorite neighborhood street, slapping five with friends, chatting with shopkeepers, having your dark sunglass-clad face admired in their windows, dodging hanging flowerpots and inhaling the comforting aromas of your favorite place. The group itself is a block party. With the addition of percussionist Iván Galvez... read full bio
The ensemble draws on a wide range of inspirations, from spirituals to Depression-era blues, from ragtime to classic jazz. (OffBeat). Wherever they go, Tuba Skinny's barnstorming live shows generate an enduring buzz, and as a result, their fans have contributed to reaching a total of approximately 40 million YouTube views. Shaye Cohn, Barnabus Jones, Kiowa Wells, and Todd Burdick had... read full bio
Over a career of jazz, R&B and crossover recordings, husband-and-wife duo Tuck & Patti produce a remarkable amount of music, especially considering that the duo rely on the textures of only guitar and voice. Tuck Andress was born in Oklahoma and studied classical guitar at Stanford University, before traveling to Las Vegas to audition for a show band; also there... read full bio
Chicago's Umphrey's McGee has cultivated an impressive presence both live and in the studio. Umphrey's boasts regularly sold-out shows from coast-to-coast and nearly all of their live shows available digitally. The band continues to draw in new listeners with their singular style: virtuoso playing and acrobatic tempo changes and rhythmic shifts complimented by dazzling song craft and composition, memorable hooks,... read full bio
The Portico Quartet founder and double-bassist Milo Fitzpatrick's latest project, Vega Trails, joins saxophonist Jordan Smart (Mammal Hands, Sunda Arc) in a highly potent duet that unites two fascinating players. The goal of the endeavor was to highlight the bass and melody in all of their unadulterated glory. Milo Fitzpatrick engaged himself in music with space and sparsity during Lockdown, including... read full bio
Venna has recently gained attention thanks to the success of longtime partner Knucks' recent Top Three album "Alpha Place," but the London-based saxophonist and producer has long been quietly crafting major albums in the afrobeats, jazz and rap genres. On "Alarm Clock," one of the highlight songs from Grammy-winning artist Burna Boy's Grammy-winning album "Twice As Tall," he contributed the stirring sax... read full bio
Vernon Reid is an English American guitarist, songwriter, composer, and bandleader. Best known as the founder and primary songwriter of the rock band Living Colour, Reid was named No. 66 on Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. Critic Steve Huey writes, [Reid's] rampant eclecticism encompasses everything from heavy metal and punk to funk, R&B and avant-garde jazz,... read full bio
The Mack Avenue recording artist Veronica Swift debuted with the album "Confessions." She received a five-star review for her second album, "This Bitter Earth", which also landed her a spot on the front cover of DownBeat, the December cover of JazzTimes and the L'Academie du Jazz "Best Vocal Album" award. Veronica Swift established herself as a talented rock and soul singer as well... read full bio
Emmy Award- winning comedienne Vicki Lawrence is one of the most beloved television personalities of her generation. Plucked out of total obscurity as a high school senior, Vicki went on to become part of the now-legendary cast of the Carol Burnett Show. In the seventh season, and hundreds of hilarious sketches later, at the ripe, old age of 24,... read full bio
Five Grammy Awards have been given to Victor Wooten, who has appeared on the cover of Bass Player Magazine five times. As a founding member of the avant-garde band Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, he is regarded as one of the best bassists currently active, frequently being compared to Jaco Pastorius. Rolling Stone Magazine listed him among the "Top ten... read full bio
Victory Boyd is a singer from New Jersey who grew up singing since the age of four with all ten members of her family in Central Park. The Boyd family had the opportunity to perform for Jay-Z and he signed them to Roc Nation right away. Boyds voice and music is a fusion of soul and folk with a touch... read full bio
Vijay Iyer displays a multitude of talents through his music. He is a pianist, composer, producer, electronic musician, and writer from New York City. As a self-taught piano player, Iyer plays the piano with ease and demonstrates his skill through his intricate jazz ensembles. He has worked with many artists such as Roscoe Mitchell, George E. Lewis, Burnt Sugar,... read full bio
Vikki Carr is a four time Grammy Award-winning, bi-lingual singing star. She has performed for over fifty years in concert, with her band or as a guest artist with symphonies and top name mariachi groups. The world is no stranger of Vikki Carr, who has performed in various genres, but has enjoyed her greatest success singing in Spanish. She has... read full bio
With his critically praised first album, "North End Soul," multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer Vincent Ingala, one of the fastest rising contemporary jazz recording artists in recent memory, has shot into a thrilling stratosphere of his own creation. The alluring saxophonist, who is still only in his twenties, has won several accolades, including Sirius XM Watercolors Breakthrough Artist of the Year... read full bio
