LORI WILLIAMS
Acclaimed international jazz vocalist Lori Williams boasts over 30 years of experience as a performing artist, music educator, songwriter, producer, actress, radio host, and founder of PositiveMusicPM.org. Her dynamic career includes annual vocal jazz tours and performances at prestigious venues and festivals worldwide, spanning Europe, Japan, the Caribbean, Mexico, and the United States. As an artist-in-residence, Lori has mentored students on college campuses globally, enriching the jazz tradition and inspiring the next generation of musicians.
Lori’s achievements as an educator and performer have earned her numerous accolades, including the National Hampton Alumni Association’s 2023 Excellence in Arts and Entertainment Award and a 2014 Helen Hayes Award nomination for her portrayal of Ella Fitzgerald. A graduate of Hampton University, Lori also hosts the weekly radio program “Collector’s Choice With Lori Williams” on JazzRadioWETF.org, highlighting women in jazz and international talent. She curates live jazz experiences as the producer and host of the Sunday Jazz Lounge at St. James Live! in Atlanta.
Over her illustrious career, Lori has collaborated with an impressive roster of artists, including Oleta Adams, Norman Brown, Peabo Bryson, and George Duke. She has released six independent albums, with her latest single, “Take My Wings,” debuting in October 2023. Lori recently recorded a jazz album in Austria, anticipated for a 2025 release, further solidifying her impact on the global jazz scene.
Tickets: $20.00 ~ $35.00
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TONY HIGHTOWER
Tony is a veteran professional. As a seasoned percussionist, songwriter, recording artist, vocalist, and producer, he has worked with many artists on a variety of projects. Tony has played drums for the following: Jomandi Productions, the Atlanta production of “Queen of the Blues” – The Life Story of Dinah Washington, Goodie Mob, Outkast, Pebbles, and Xscape. He has also done session work for several Organized Noize Production artists, including Goodie Mob and Outkast. Tony has contributed vocals to the successful projects of Gerald Levert, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the soundtrack for “Money Train,” Goodie Mob’s certified gold album “Soul Food,” Society of Soul’s album “Brainchild,” Pebbles’ album “Straight From My Heart,” Lionel Richie’s album “Louder Than Words,” and Outkast’s certified double platinum album “Aquemini.” Tony was also an artistic contributor to the song “Together We Can,” which was a project by The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (also known as the N.A.R.A.S. or The Recording Academy) to raise funds for the victims of the Columbine shooting.
Cover: $40.00
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Toni Ballard was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 12, 1946 and sang in the school choir during her primary years. She learned to play the guitar in college, then formed a band with her husband.
From 1981 to 1984 Ballard hosted Tasteful Blend on WICN Radio and recorded a children’s jazz album the following year. During the Nineties she collaborated with Larry Coryell and recorded I’m Your Pal, and produced and hosted CAble Ace nominated Studio 3 Jazz for seven years.
As the publicist for Berklee School of Music from 1998 to 2004 she was responsible for forming the relationship between the school and Black Entertainment Television, and worked on Jazz Scenes and Impressions.
Toni has performed with the Silvefr Bullet Orchestra, the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, the Boston Big Band, the White Heat Swing Orchestra, Ryles Jaz Orchestra, Worcester Jazz Orchestra, and the Benny Goodman Tribute Band.
Vocalist Toni Ballard is currently a freelance publicist and is involved with benefit concerts for Pancreatic Cancer Alliance.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Akua Allrich was born on July 11th in Washington, D.C., the child of a musical family with a home that held such a wealth of jazz recordings that she did not buy any albums until her second year in college. One of the first jazz albums she bought was John Coltrane’s Live at the Village Vanguard: The Master Takes.
Educated at Howard University, she obtained her BM in jazz vocals and a master’s degree in social work. She was taught, coached and mentored by talented musicians such as world-renowned singer Kehembe V. Eichelberger, singer/drummer Grady Tate, and pianist Charles Covington.
Her musical roots run deeply into blues, soul and rhythm and blues, with a clear grounding in jazz and pan-African music. She launched her independently produced album A Peace of Mine in 2010, which created a significant buzz with critics and music-lovers alike. She sings in many languages including Portuguese, French, Spanish, English, Xhosa, and Twi.
Vocalist, composer and teacher, Akua Allrich continues to electrify audiences and is likened to such legendary artists as Oscar Brown, Jr., Miriam Makeba and Nina Simone.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Jyrki Sakari Kukko was born July 8, 1953 in Kajaani, Finlan and started his career in the early 1960s as a singer participating in several singing contests and performing in radio stations, TV programs and other venues. At the age of 7, he began taking piano lessons and soon after started playing guitar and flute, then saxophone. The mid-1960s saw him forming bands, constructing a school band, playing mainly rock and roll, before forming a group of local dance bands.
He embarked his career at sixteen playing with the Kajaani Big Band, Kisu & Uniset, Markku Suominen’s Monopol, Tapiola Big Band, Oulunkylä Big Band, Maarit & Afrikan Tähti, Kalevala, SIMO Big Band, Jukka Tolonen’s band, Heikki Sarmanto’s band, Sensation Band of Addis Ababa, Mahmoud Ahmed’s Ibex Band, Etoile de Dakar, and Espoo Big Band through the Seventies. He founded the group Piirpauke in 1974.
He has performed with Youssou Ndour, John McLaughlin, Pat Metheny, Bob Mose, Lester Bowie, Charlie Mariano, Thad Jones, Paquito d’Rivera, Ted Curson, Walter Bishop Jr., Herbie Hanckock’s HeadHunters, Richie Cole, Juan Carlos Romero, and numerous Finnish musicians.
Working as a studio-musician Kukko performed as a freelancer with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Finnish National Opera. He has composed music for his own bands, EBB, Koiton Laulu and several films and theaters.
Pianist, flutist, guitarist, saxophonist, vocalist and composer Sakari Kukko continues to perform with over forty countries around the globe.
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