Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. is an American jazz singer and songwriter. He is known for his vocal techniques, such as singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also rapidly alternating with arpeggios and harmonies—as well as scat singing, polyphonic overtone singing, and improvisational vocal percussion. He is widely known for performing and recording regularly as an unaccompanied solo vocal artist. He has frequently collaborated with other artists from both the jazz and classical scenes.
Robert Hutcherson was an American jazz vibraphone and marimba player. "Little B's Poem", from the 1966 Blue Note album Components, is one of his best-known compositions. Hutcherson influenced younger vibraphonists including Steve Nelson, Joe Locke, and Stefon Harris.
"Don't Worry, Be Happy" is a 1988 song by American musician Bobby McFerrin, released as the first single from his fourth album, Simple Pleasures (1988). It was the first a cappella song to reach number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, a position it held for two weeks. Originally released in conjunction with the film Cocktail, the song peaked at number-one on September 24, 1988, displacing "Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N' Roses.
Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5 is the debut studio album from Gary, Indiana-based soul family band the Jackson 5, released on the Motown label on December 12, 1969. The Jackson 5's lead singer, a preadolescent Michael Jackson and his four older brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, and Marlon, became pop successes within months of this album's release. Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5's only single, "I Want You Back", became a number-one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100 within weeks of the album's release. The album reached number 5 on the US Pop Albums chart, and spent nine weeks at No. 1 on the US R&B/Black Albums chart.
Bilal Sayeed Oliver is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is an independent artist, noted for his wide vocal range, work across multiple genres, and intense live performances.
Karriem Riggins is a multi-talented American musician who has made a name for himself as a Jazz drummer, Hip Hop producer, DJ and songwriter. With a career spanning over two decades, Riggins has collaborated with some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Kanye West, Common, and Diana Krall. His unique style and versatility have earned him critical acclaim and a loyal fan base.
Derrick Hodge is an American composer, musical director, bandleader, producer bassist and advocate. To date he has been awarded two Grammys, named a Sundance Composer Fellow, received a Motif Award; one of world's highest honors for Child Advocacy, and his playing on Common's BE has been recognized as one of top 20 basslines in Hip Hop History.
Vince Mendoza is an American composer, music arranger and conductor. He debuted as a solo artist in 1989, and is known for his work conducting the Metropole Orkest and WDR Big Band Köln, as well as arranging music for musicians such as John Scofield, Joni Mitchell, Michael Brecker and Björk. Over the course of his career, he has won seven Grammy Awards and one Latin Grammy Award and has been nominated for a total of 38 between the two awards.
Robert Andre Glasper is an American pianist, record producer, songwriter, and musical arranger. His artistry bridges several different musical and artistic genres, mostly centered on jazz. To date, Glasper has won five Grammy Awards and received eleven nominations across eight categories.
Robert Keith McFerrin Sr. was an American operatic baritone and the first African-American man to sing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. His voice was described by critic Albert Goldberg in the Los Angeles Times as "a baritone of beautiful quality, even in all registers, and with a top that partakes of something of a tenor's ringing brilliance." He was the father of Grammy Award-winning vocalist Robert McFerrin Jr., better known as Bobby McFerrin.
Ledisi Anibade Young, better known simply as Ledisi, is an American R&B and jazz recording artist, songwriter, music producer, author and actress. Her name means "to bring forth" or "to come here" in Yoruba.
Janis Siegel is an American jazz singer, best known as a member of the vocal group The Manhattan Transfer.
Speak Now is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, released on October 25, 2010, through Big Machine Records. Swift wrote the album entirely herself within two years while touring to promote her second studio album, Fearless (2008).
Malcolm James McCormick, known professionally as Mac Miller, was an American rapper and record producer. Miller began his career in Pittsburgh's hip hop scene in 2007, at the age of fifteen. In 2010, he signed a record deal with independent label Rostrum Records and released his breakthrough mixtapes K.I.D.S. (2010) and Best Day Ever (2011). Miller's debut studio album, Blue Slide Park (2011), became the first independently distributed debut album to top the US Billboard 200 since 1995.
Black Radio is an album by Robert Glasper, recorded with his electric quartet, the Robert Glasper Experiment. Released on February 28, 2012, on the Blue Note label, the album won Best R&B Album at the 55th Grammy Awards and also received a nomination for Best R&B Performance from the album cut "Gonna Be Alright (F.T.B.)", which featured R&B singer Ledisi, in February 2013.
Nir Felder is a Grammy-winning American jazz and session guitarist, composer, and music producer. In addition to leading his own band, Felder has performed and recorded with a diverse array of artists across the jazz and popular music genre spectrum, including Diana Krall, Brad Mehldau, John Mayer, Rina Sawayama, Ben Platt, Chaka Khan, Keyon Harrold, Robert Glasper, Chris Dave, PJ Morton, Snarky Puppy, Terrace Martin, Kamasi Washington, Erykah Badu, Common, Anderson .Paak, Dave Chapelle, Dave Matthews Band, Benson Boone, Cautious Clay, Faith Evans, Skylar Grey, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Terri Lyne Carrington, Vijay Iyer, Blood Sweat and Tears, Chuck Mangione, Greg Osby, Jordan Smith, Amy Schumer, Victor Wooten, Shoshana Bean, Jack DeJohnette, Esperanza Spalding, Bobby McFerrin, Meshell Ndegeocello, Dianne Reeves, the New York City Opera, and others. In both 2021 and 2023, he won Downbeat Magazine's Critic's Poll for "Rising Star Guitarist."
Early Riser is the debut studio album by American musician Taylor McFerrin. It was released on June 2, 2014 through Brainfeeder. Produced by McFerrin himself, it features contributions from Bobby McFerrin, César Camargo Mariano, Emily King, Jason Fraticelli, Marcus Gilmore, Nai Palm, Robert Glasper, RYAT and Thundercat.
Qmillion, is an American record producer, mix engineer, composer, and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California, United States. Qmillion's achievement for recording and mixing recording artist Robert Glasper's critically acclaimed Black Radio album, gained him a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album at the 55th Grammy Awards in 2013. and most recently nominated for Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical for Black Radio III by Robert Glasper on the 2023 Grammys.
Marcus Gilmore is an American jazz drummer. In 2009, New York Times critic Ben Ratliff included Gilmore in his list of drummers who are "finding new ways to look at the drum set, and at jazz itself", saying, "he created that pleasant citywide buzz when someone new and special blows through New York clubs and jam sessions"..
Collagically Speaking is the debut studio album by jazz supergroup R+R=NOW. It was released on June 15, 2018 through Blue Note Records. Recording sessions took place at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles. Production was handled by Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, Derrick Hodge, Justin Tyson, Robert Glasper, Taylor McFerrin and Terrace Martin, with Nicole Hegeman and Vincent Bennett serving as executive producers. It features contributions from Amanda Seales, Amber Navran, Goapele Mohlabane, India Shawn, Jahi Sundance, Mirna Jose, Omari Hardwick, Stalley, Terry Crews and Yasiin Bey.
