Haruka Kikuchi is one of the city’s most dynamic horn players, engaging audiences with her musicality, stage presence, and expertise on the slide trombone. Kikuchi was born in Japan, loved listening to all kinds of music, and excelled on piano and violin, but had her “aha” ... Read more

A Crescent City native from the famed Lower Ninth Ward, Robin Barnes, fondly known as “The Songbird of New Orleans,” is sharing the musical DNA of Louisiana (everything from funk to bounce to zydeco) with the world. Whether on her own or with her band, The Fiyabirds, the aw... Read more

Mikayla Braun can bring down the house with just her smoky, powerful voice, her ukulele, and a piano, although she can often be found with a cast of all-star musicians. The talented songwriter is a club staple around the Crescent City and beyond. Her latest EP, “Drift,” off... Read more

Joe Gelini is New Orleans drummer and songsmith perhaps best known for his work with the Grammy-nominated Mardi Gras Indian funk band Cha Wa. The Berklee-trained drummer honed his chops with New Orleans legends ranging from Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and Cyril Neville to Ande... Read more

Joe Ashlar is a versatile jazz organist and pianist who can be found performing around the world and in New Orleans with The Joe Ashlar Organ Trio, Good Enough for Good Times, YYRP, and a host of other groups. Ashlar incorporates New Orleans funk, the spirituality of Dr. Lo... Read more

Grammy-winning singer Irma Thomas had her first hit in 1959, and over the course of a six-decade career has earned the title, “Soul Queen of New Orleans.” Born in 1941 in Ponchatoula, Louisiana, Thomas was raised in New Orleans, singing in school and in church choirs, wher... Read more

Doyle “Red” Cooper took up the trumpet at age 10; by the time he turned 30 he’d played the Jazzfest nearly 50 times. Today he is a fixture on the trad jazz scene, playing trumpet or tuba, in his own Doyle Cooper Jazz Band or with the Storyville Stompers, the Red Hot Brass B... Read more

C. R. Gruver is a keyboardist, educator, and bandleader who can usually be found performing with the hard-touring New Orleans Suspects or as head of the New Orleans School of Rock youth program. His musical stylings emerge from a multitude of influences ranging from Little ... Read more

Brad Walker is one of the city’s – no, make that the country’s – most in-demand sax players. Whether he is leading the horn section for Sturgill Simpson at the Grammy Awards, backing up Anders Osborne, or jamming at a New Orleans jazz club, Walker’s energetic, soaring and t... Read more

Big Joe Kennedy is a staple on the New Orleans trad jazz and burlesque scene, holding down regular gigs around town as a sideman and as a solo pianist. While his own set lists trend heavily towards jazz staples, the versatile performer has written songs for the city’s burge... Read more