Congratulations to Terri Lyne Carrington, who won the GRAMMY Award for Best Instrumental Jazz Album today for her groundbreaking project, new STANDARDS Vol. 1. The other project she released, Live At The Detroit Jazz Festival by Wayne Shorter, Terri Lyne Carrington, Leo Genovese and esperanza spalding, earned a win in the Best Improvised Jazz Solo category for Wayne Shorter & Leo Genovese’s recording of “Endangered Species.”

Gulf Coast Records announces the signing of acclaimed St. Petersburg-based Backtrack Blues Band and will release their label debut, A Day by the Bay, on April 14th.

High Moon Records is proud to announce the first-ever comprehensive anthology from singer-songwriter Laurie Styvers. Gemini Girl: The Complete Hush Recordings arrives on 2XCD and digital download on Friday, February 17.

On Monday, January 23, Backline announced Break The Barriers; a movement that aims to end the stigma around mental health by asking participants to commit to taking care of their own mental health, and take action to address and dismantle the systemic and historical barriers that BIPOC communities face when seeking mental health care.

Sometimes, inspiration strikes in the strangest of places. According to three-time Juno Award nominee Del Barber, his new tune, “Still Got You,” flashed before his eyes while he was taking a leak outside one night on his little farm in western Manitoba. “The stars looked like they were crammed in the sky like sardines, the wolves were howling, cows were bawling,” Barber remembers. “I had my dog Fischer next to me.

Three-time Grammy award winning singer-songwriter Joe Henry has just released his latest work All The Eye Can See. Henry, who also took upon the role as producer, recorded his most personal album to-date in the comfort of his home. A video of the artist performing the song “Karen Dalton” at his home studio gives an insight of this process. It premieres today at 16.00 CET / 12.00 pm ET / 09.00 am PT on the earMUSIC YouTube channel.

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings has just released the groundbreaking new album Ears of the People: Ekonting Songs from Senegal and The Gambia that represents the first full length representation of the West African ekonting. Considered the key ancestor of the American banjo, the ekonting is alive and well in West Africa, telling the stories of the artists who love it today. And yet it still exhibits some of the same or similar playing techniques as the American banjo, separated by centuries and some of the worst history in the world.

Dub Pistols, the multi-cultural collective founded by Barry Ashworth, has involved dozens of artists and musicians over the years. Since releasing their 1998 breakthrough album Point Blank, the Dub Pistols sound has accordingly morphed a variety of times, taking in dub, punk, jungle, ska, breakbeat, hip-hop and a whole lot more...it’s been a long road traveled. 

As we celebrate Black History Month, there is an opportunity for us to reflect on the indispensable contributions that African American musicians have made to the world of jazz. From the roots of blues and ragtime, to the swing era, bebop, and beyond, jazz has always been shaped by the talent, creativity, and vision of black artists. From Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, to Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone, these artists have left an indelible mark on the world of music.

Like any good folk songwriter before her, Ellie Turner hones in on the twists and turns of her journey—not so much her destination—to tell the collective story of her debut album, When The Trouble’s All Done. And Turner’s path has taken quite a few twists and turns. Originally from Dallas, Texas, Turner has always been creative, although her passion was initially channeled into visual art and design.