Jazz88 is happy to be a part of the thriving Minnesota Jazz scene. Year after year the players from this town deliver the goods with stellar performances and masterful recordings. This year, our Minnesota Jazz Tracks host Sam Keenan compiled the top twenty local tracks as voted on by the listeners of the Jazz88. Thanks...Read More
This has been a banner year for Minnesota jazz releases. We are bursting at the seams with new sounds from Kavyesh Kaviraj, Take That Back, Zacc Harris and more. Another release that deserves to be on the short list for best release of the year is L.A. Buckner and BiG HOMiE’s new outing Norfside. We have already...Read More
Music is the ultimate conjurer of emotions. The sounds of “Fireflies” off of L.A. Buckner and BiG HOMiE’s forthcoming record “Norfside” conjures a lifetime of triumph into three and a half minutes of music like the groove downed three espressos before the second measure and as the group navigates the various sections there is a...Read More
In the summer of 2020 deVon Russell Gray, Nathan Hanson and Davu Seru recorded the album We Sick in a church in Saint Paul that was available due to the COVID pandemic. The tumult of the summer of 2020 showed up in all sorts of ways on the spontaneously composed recordings. Since the 2022 release...Read More
According to LA Buckner, he is putting “all his eggs into his own basket.” After years of splitting his time as a sideman and as a leader he is focusing on taking LA Buckner and BiG HOMiE up to the next level. To that end, Buckner is making his debut as a leader at Crooners...Read More
LA Buckner and his Big HomiE project are preparing for another big show at the Dakota. This week he’ll be bringing a special Halloween friendly program to the stage. When he visited Jazz88 he talked about this show and his recent experience playing with Big HomiE on stages that require different levels of restraint in...Read More
Grammy-nominated alternative jazz drummer, producer, and rapper Kassa Overall has released “2 Sentimental,” a melancholic reimagining of Duke Ellington’s ballad, “In a Sentimental Mood,” which Overall has transformed into an anthem for musicians struggling to survive the economic upheaval of the post-pandemic era. Enjoy the single, and check out an email conversation between Kassa Overall...Read More
Drummer, vocalist, and bandleader Stokley is an internationally-acclaimed R&B star, both as a solo act and through his 20+ year career with Mint Condition, though he keeps a fairly low profile in his native Twin Cities. Stokley doesn’t perform locally all that often, but when he does. . .it’s an event. This Saturday, Oct. 7,...Read More
Coming up on Wednesday, June 28, Jazz88 presents the fourth and final installment in our JazzClectic pop-up concert series: multi-instrumentalist/composer/educator and guest broadcaster on KBEM, Kevin Washington and his newest outfit, RA Spirit, will perform from 5:00 to 6:30 PM at the Water Works Pavilion in Mill Ruins Park, located in downtown Minneapolis. This FREE...Read More
Coming up on Sunday, June 11, Jazz88 presents the third installment in our JazzClectic pop-up concert series: drummer/composer/educator and friend of the station L.A. Buckner + Big Homie will perform from 2:00 to 3:30 PM at the Mall of America® Huntington® Bank rotunda. This FREE show from one of the most electrifying drummers in the...Read More
