Robert Glasper X Dinner Party Ft. Terrace Martin, Kamasi Washington and 9th Wonder

Robert Glasper​ is the leader of a new sonic paradigm with a career that bridges musical and artistic genres. To date, he boasts 3 Grammy wins and 8 nominations across 6 categories, and an Emmy Award for his song for Ava Duvernay’s critically hailed documentary “13th” with Common and Karriem Riggins. 

Evolution is his hallmark. Glasper’s breakout crossover album ​Black Radio​ changed the face of the genre and set a new expectation for what popular music could be. The album won him the Grammy for best R&B album and established him as the musician of choice for some of the world’s most iconic artists; notably playing keys throughout Kendrick Lamar's ​To Pimp A Butterfly, ​ winning another Grammy for the elastic track “These Walls”. The ongoing Black Radio series has since become Glasper’s calling card, upholding a place at the heart of a trailblazing community: from long-time sonic brothers Mos Def and Bilal, to legends including Ledisi, Lupe Fiasco, Kanye West, Jill Scott, and Erykah Badu.  

Glasper’s eternal pursuit to further his sound has been consistent in challenging and transforming his creative horizons across the board. Whether producing a remix album with Kaytranda or as a bandleader, Robert consistently defies the limits of the genre. This is evident in a portfolio that ranges from his acoustic jazz trio; which simultaneously defies and elevates the traditional idiom by uniting it effortlessly with electronics from visionary DJ Jahi Sundance, to August Greene; a collaboration with Common + Karriem Riggins, to R+R=Now; a supergroup at the crossroads of hip-hop and Jazz. 
In the last year alone Glasper has seen a staggering diversity of success. He dropped ​Fuck Yo Feelings​ ; a star-studded mixtape; his first on Loma Vista Records; with features ranging from YBN Cordae to Herbie Hancock to Yebba. He created an original score for the Emmy Nominated doc​ The Apollo ​ and the feature film ​The Photograph​ starring Issa Rae. He led a legendary residency at the Blue Note NYC with 56 sold-out shows in 27 days which saw everyone from Dave Chappelle to Tiffany Haddish, Chadwick Boseman, Q-Tip, Anderson.Paak and Angela Davis join him on and off stage. And, alongside long-time collaborator, co-producer, and creative partner Terrace Martin, he formed another dream team supergroup featuring Kamasi Washington and 9th Wonder called Dinner Party, who together wrote and recorded a debut self titled album that was released to rave reviews.  

With boundless innovation and elite technique as his signature it’s no surprise that Glasper has an avalanche of accolades, awards, and achievements to his name - most recently being asked to play at the 2020 March On Washington with Derrick Hodge and funk legend, Sir George Clinton. In August of 2020, Robert released ‘Better Than Imagined’; the first taste of his hotly anticipated forthcoming ​Black Radio 3 ​ album​. ​ Featuring H.E.R and Meshell Ndegeocello, the song advocates for Black love and the power, and responsibility, we have to improve our world; again demonstrating that, above all, Glasper is an artist at the heart of a moment - and a movement - to champion Black music, Black people, and the possibility of a better future. The hip-hop-head-nod ballad is a dedication to just that: the beauty and brilliance of a heritage that is as much Kendrick as it is Coltrane, and which seeks to empower and uplift with every offering.   Both ​Fuck Yo Feelings ​ And ‘Better Than Imagined”  have received Grammy Nominations for the upcoming 2021 Grammy Awards.  

In his own words: 
"Black lives matter and so does black love; no one wants a life without love, but we have generations of people in our community who haven't had the tools to actually be in healthy relationships. It seems like people are finally ready to open their eyes to systemic racism in this country, and if we're going to talk about it, we have to also talk about how it affects our relationships, how we communicate, how we see ourselves, how we treat each other. It's not always good, even though maybe it could be." - Robert Glasper  

 

A three-time GRAMMY-nominated artist/producer/multi-instrumentalist from the Crenshaw District, Terrace Martin is renowned as being one of the top jazz musicians in the world and has become a creative engine at the epicenter of LA's progressive hip-hop scene. His noteworthy production has included major collaborations with Kendrick Lamar (good kid, M.A.A.D. city & the GRAMMY-winning To Pimp a Butterfly), Travis Scott, Stevie Wonder, Snoop Dogg, Herbie Hancock, and many other influential artists. Among the most versatile musicians and producers of his generation, Terrace's path is leading him in parallel with the greats including Quincy Jones and Dr. Dre, while also launching his vibrant, progressive, genre-crossing record label, Sounds of Crenshaw.

When kamasi washington released his tour de force lp, the epic, in 2015, it instantly set him on a path as our generation’s torchbearer for progressive, improvisational music that would open the door for young audiences to experience music unlike anything they had heard before. The 172-minute odyssey featuring his 10-piece band, the next step, was littered with elements of hip-hop, classical and r&b music, all major influences on the young saxophonist and bandleader, who exceeds any notions of what “jazz” music is. Released to critical acclaim, the epic won numerous “best of” awards, including the inaugural american music prize and the gilles peterson worldwide album of the year. Washington followed that work with collaborations with other influential artists such as kendrick lamar, john legend, run the jewels, ibeyi and the creation of “harmony of difference,” a standalone multimedia installation during the prestigious 2017 biennial at the whitney museum of american art in new york city.

His mass appeal continues to grow drawing vibrant, multi-ethnic and multi-generational crowds with tour stops at the world’s most prominent festivals such as coachella, glastonbury, fuji rock, bonnaroo and primavera.  Next up for washington is his highly anticipated sophmore album, due for release in the summer of 2018.

Growing up in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the boy who would become producer 9th Wonder, Pat Douthit, performed in the school band and also played keyboards at home. Initially, while a student at North Carolina Central University, Douthit planned on saving his money for the producer's favorite tool, the MPC, but after a friend showed him that he could make the beats he wanted on a computer, he decided to use that instead. In 1998 he met classmates and future bandmates Phonte and Big Pooh, and with them soon formed Little Brother. Their first album, The Listening, was released in 2003, and 9th Wonder began to receive further attention after he remixed Nas' 2002 album, God's Son, naming it God's Stepson, as well as the track "Threat," which he produced on JAY Z's seminal The Black Album. Work with Murs, Buckshot, Jean Grae, Destiny's Child, and Mary J. Blige followed, as well as another Little Brother record, 2005's Minstrel Show, the same year his proper solo debut, Dream Merchant, Vol. 1, came out. In 2007, 9th Wonder left Little Brother and spent his time both producing tracks for the likes of Erykah Badu and Sean Price, and teaching a class on hip-hop at NCCU and collaborating with Boot Camp Clik's Buckshot for an album called The Formula, which was released in the spring of 2008. Two collaborative albums arrived in 2010, with Fornever featuring Murs and Death of a Pop Star featuring David Banner. The proper solo effort The Wonder Years followed in 2011, while the 2012 release, The Solution, teamed the producer with rapper Buckshot. Another collaborative effort with Murs, The Final Adventure, also arrived in 2012, while 2015 was the year he dropped the album Indie 500 with Talib Kweli.

The 6 foot, Texas raised musician didn’t actually begin his career with the bass, he started as a violinist at Elementary Culture School. Only after his teacher picked him to play the large upright bass, because he was the tallest guy in the class, did he finally find his true calling. Travis was simultaneously a self-proclaimed hip-hop head who was a huge fan of acts like A Tribe Called Quest and loved the local Houston Chopped & Screwed scene birthed by DJ Screw, and didn’t feel confident about pursuing a career as a bassist. It would take a couple of encounters with vibraphonist Stefon Harris throughout his journey before he considered playing on a professional level. He developed his skills for a bit playing with a local orchestra before entering into the Houston jazz scene, and his career quickly took off from there.
Now based in Brooklyn, New York, the 23-year-old Travis is back on the live music scene after a year-long hiatus, and is ready to explore a new musical territory. Certainly not one of the gabbiest, and unsure at first exactly what he could offer our session together, it turned out that he actually was flooded with ideas once we got started, as is true with most musicians when given a chance to talk about the thing that they love most. 

What happens when “love isn’t enough?” With his EP, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and DJ Jahi Sundance responds with a collection of break-up anthems that fuse funk and soul with heartbreak and longing, dichotomizing emotional fallout with uncompromising beats, depression with disco. Love is, after all, a paradox. And in these six songs, Sundance gifts us with an up-tempo exploration of the stages of relationship grief, acknowledging what breakthroughs may or may not come from breaking up.

With over 25 years in the music game, Sundance has created some of the most inventive DJ sets & sounds scapes in the scene today. He has toured with Robert Glasper, Me’shell N’degeocello, Christian McBride, and graced the stage of Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Recent producer/writer credits include Chris Brown, Danity Kane, Miguel, Common, and The World Cup.

Jahi lives in LA where he manages his record label More Than Enough and continues work on multiple projects.

Independent gospel drummer Justin Tyson is son of the late organist Craig Tyson and Shawn Tyson's nephew.

Justin Tyson is a talented and respected up-and-coming musician living in New York City. Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan but raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, he started playing the drums at the age of three and from that day on continued to perfect his craft.

Tyson is a Berklee College of Music alumnus; there his love for the drums and music in general expanded. Justin has played for Jessie J, Estelle, Mos Def, Tyrese, Cubic Zirconia, Sirah, Ryan Leslie and is currently the drummer for Esperanza Spalding and Now vs Now.