Patty Peterson spoke with Jarrod Lawson before his concert TONIGHT at Dakota. The secret’s out about Jarrod Lawson. The smoky-voiced soul singer from Portland, Oregon (now residing in Nashville) has exploded as an international sensation, topping charts, garnering awards, and leading the way forward into a renaissance of message-focused, modern soul-jazz fusion. Heavily inspired by...Read More

This week’s hot new local single “Do You Feel Good,” from trumpeter Adam Meckler’s recent hip-hop meets big band project, Sampled.  The album’s ten selections are reworkings of music originally recorded by the Adam Meckler Orchestra. Meckler collaborated with a variety of rappers, producers, vocalists, and instrumentalists to rework his compositions. “Do You Feel Good” is...Read More

This week, I had the privilege of interview one of the icons in the contemporary jazz world: Saxophonist/arranger Bob Mintzer. He, along with The YellowJackets are coming to town on Jan 21 at Dakota for one night of highly creative jazz. Every time they circle back to the Twin Cities to perform, they have the...Read More

Saxman Andrew Tomten has been a part of the powerhouse horn section of Purple Funk Metropolis for years now. Andrew is also a Minneapolis-based graphic designer, motion designer and illustrator with an impressive portfolio. Having composed and performed his own music in the past, he’s out of the gate in 2026 with a new track, “Motorbike Man”....Read More

This week’s hot new local single is “Twelve Thirty-Four,” from Johannes Wallmann’s newest release, Not Tired, released on December 5th. While the musicians are from our neighboring state Wisconsin, the record was released on the Twin Cities’ Shifting Paradigm Records, whose roster of artists are no strangers to Jazz88’s airwaves. Here, Nick Moran sets the pace...Read More

Hanukkah comes early this year on the Jazz Impulse! Tune into the Jazz Impulse on Jazz88  Saturday Night as we will be live from the Dakota in Minneapolis, broadcasting The Klezmatics “Happy Joyous Hanukkah” performance live on the air! Their record  Woody Guthrie’s Happy Joyous Hanukkah” has recently been reissued for the holidays and is the highlight of the current...Read More

Patty Peterson had the pleasure to interview Connie Evingson and Bruce Henry who are both singing with JazzMN Orchestra on December 8th on the mainstage at Chanhassen Dinner Theaters. They talk about the thrill of singing with this incredible orchestra, and how much fun it is to reunite with the friends who are top musicians...Read More

Please join Jazz88 in welcoming Yonci Jameson! From North Minneapolis, Yonci Jameson (she/they) joins KBEM-Jazz88 as Music Director and host of the Afternoon Cruise, which airs Monday through Friday from 3-7pm. Rooted in a rich cultural lineage, Yonci’s broadcasting career began as a child on KFAI’s Mostly Jazz, established in 1993 by her Great-Grandmother Patricia Walton,...Read More

This week’s Hot New Local Single is an original song by Leslie Vincent called “Tallying Strangers.” It’s from her forthcoming album, Little Black Book. Vincent grew up listening to Frank Sinatra as well as more contemporary vocalists like Brittany Spears, The style, phrasing, and instrumentation of her new recording harkens back to the days before rock...Read More

This week’s Hot New Local Single comes to us courtesy of Abinnet Berhanu’s Ahndenet, featuring singer Genet Abate. Berhanu and Abate are both Ethiopian and the music reflects that rich heritage. The song is titled Yinegera, which in English is “Let It Be Heard.” It’s about unrequited love,or as Berhanu explains, “The story of the...Read More