/ Kandace Springs
For Kandace Springs it boils down to a question that connects past to present: “What would Nina Simone do if she had the technology of today? You could never put Nina in a box—she would do a blues followed a classical piece, a jazz standard and then a Beatles cover.” Kandace grew up the bi-racial daughter of a soul singer in a country-western town. Her dad Scat Springs had his own band but also sang backup for an incredible array of musicians: Brian McKnight, Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin, Michael McDonald, Donna Summer. He instilled in Kandace a love of the greats—Nina of course, but also Ella Fitzgerald, Eva Cassidy, and Luther Vandross.
/ Michael McDonald
Michael McDonald is an American singer-songwriter, keyboardist, and record producer known for his distinctive, soulful voice and as a member of the bands The Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan. McDonald wrote and sang several hit singles with The Doobie Brothers, including “What a Fool Believes,” “Minute By Minute,” and “Takin' It to the Streets.” McDonald's solo career consists of nine studio albums and a number of singles, including the 1982 hit "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)." McDonald is the recipient of five Grammy Awards.
/ Brian Owens
Sitting across the table from Brian Owens, one might get the feeling of conversing with — as some say — an old soul. There is a calmness and self-assuredness that suggests he’s been here before, even though he is only on the verge of becoming the new voice of American soul. Brian has been featured with his band on The Ellen Degeneres Show, Entertainment Tonight, and Fox and Friends. Brian attributes much of his style of interpretation to the consistency of human nature. “I’ve found that there is nothing new to write about – just new ways to write about the traditional, but exciting cycles of life. Music that reaches and touches people is about human nature. That doesn’t change. What makes us vulnerable, what makes us scared, what makes us happy — it never changes.”
/ Cyrille Aimée
Improvisation is not just a technique for Cyrille Aimée, it’s a way of life. The acclaimed vocalist ventured from singing on street corners in Europe to dazzling audiences at the world’s most prestigious jazz festivals; from sneaking out to sing in gypsy encampments in her native France to acting on Broadway; from braving the notoriously tough audiences at New York’s Apollo Theatre to being called a “rising star in the galaxy of jazz singers” by the New York Times. Among countless accolades, Aimée won the Montreux Jazz Festival Vocal Competition and the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition.
/ Terrace Martin
Terrace Martin is an American musician, rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor from Los Angeles, California. He is perhaps best known for producing records for several prominent artists in the music industry, including Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, The Game, Busta Rhymes, Stevie Wonder, Charlie Wilson, Raphael Saadiq and YG among others. Martin is a multi-instrumentalist, whose music production embodies everything from funk and jazz to classical and soul. Martin recently released his sixth studio album Velvet Portraits on his newly formed label, Sounds of Crenshaw Records, through Ropeadope Records.
/ Jonatha Brooke
Jonatha Brooke is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a performer, writer, and artist since the late 1980s, and her songs have been used in television shows and movies.
/ Charlie Hunter
With a career spanning 16 years and almost 20 albums, Charlie Hunter consistently ups his game as an innovative writer and bandleader. He has worked with the likes of Norah Jones , Mos Def, John Mayer, D’Angelo and countless others. He is widely considered the authority on the seven and eight - string guitar, and continues to stun audiences with his ability to simultaneously bust out tasty bass parts, melodic leads and swinging rhythms. Hunter has previously recorded for the venerable Blue Note label, Concord, Ropeadope, GroundUP and others. Critics have touted his genius technique, but it's his profound artistic sensibility that propels his original music. Hunter's signature style of writing and performing has secured his place as one of today's great guitarists.
/ Bob James
Bob James is an American Grammy Award-winning jazz keyboardist, arranger, and record producer. He founded the band Fourplay and wrote "Angela," the theme song for the TV show Taxi. He is most famous for standards such as "Nautilus", "Westchester Lady", "Heads", "Night Crawler", "Touchdown", "Blue Lick", "Sign Of the Times", "Spunky", "Marco Polo", "Courtship" and "Just One Thing". Music from his first seven albums has often been sampled and has contributed to the formation of hip hop.
/ Cory Henry
One of the finest Hammond B-3 organ players of his generation, Cory Henry was a child prodigy, playing both piano and organ by the time he was two years old, making his debut at the legendary Apollo Theater when he was only six. He has worked in the studio and toured with countless artists, including Yolanda Adams, Stanley Brown, Israel Houghton, P. Diddy, Kirk Franklin, Kenny Garrett (the 19-year-old Henry became a fixture in Garrett's touring band for three years), Donnie McClurkin, Boyz II Men, Michael McDonald, Bruce Springsteen, the Roots, and many others. He has also worked as a bandleader and producer as well as an in-demand sideman.
/ Joey DeFrancesco
Joey DeFrancesco's emergence in the 1980s marked the onset of a musical renaissance. Organ jazz had all but gone into hibernation from the mid-'70s to the mid-'80s until DeFrancesco reignited the flame with his vintage Hammond organ and Leslie speaker cabinet. He has recorded and/or toured with his own groups as well as numerous renowned artists that include Ray Charles, Van Morrison, Diana Krall, Nancy Wilson, George Benson, James Moody, John Scofield, Bobby Hutcherson, Jimmy Cobb, John McLaughlin, Larry Coryell, David Sanborn and many more. The four time Grammy® Award-nominee, with more than 30 recordings as a leader under his belt, has received countless Jazz Journalist Association awards and other accolades worldwide, including being inducted into the inaugural Hammond Organ Hall of Fame in 2014, the Philadelphia Music Walk of Fame in 2016 as well as topping the Critics Polls in DownBeat Magazine eleven times over the past fifteen years and the Readers Polls every year since 2005. DeFrancesco also hosts a weekly program on SiriusXM Radio's Real Jazz channel titled "Organized."