Kurt Rosenwinkel is a highly acclaimed and influential jazz guitarist, composer, and bandleader. Hailed as one of the most important jazz musicians of his generation, Rosenwinkel has spent decades pushing the boundaries of the jazz genre and developing a signature sound that has captivated audiences worldwide. With a career spanning over 30 years, Kurt Rosenwinkel has released a series of groundbreaking albums, collaborated with jazz legends, and continues to inspire the next generation of jazz musicians. His innovative approach to composition and improvisation has made him a household name among jazz enthusiasts.
I'll be singing and playing piano at the unique and wonderful Federicos Grill offering up a tasty mix of Jazz Standards, Bossa Nova, Blues, R&B and other stuff. You can find me here every other Thursday. When the weather is warm I am out on the patio where there is a lovely view of the hills and sunset. Come and enjoy a delicious Italian meal or just have a drink and/or dessert in a warm, colorful, arty and friendly place~ Located in the historic town of Niles, where Charlie Chaplin made his first movies, come early and explore the Essanay Theatre, antique and curio shops. Hope to see you there!
The Wall Street Journal has described it as a “genre and industry-defying mission.” NPR declared it a “multilayered experience.” The New York Times commended the movement as carving out a new path in country music. All tell the story of Miko Marks’ resurgence as she deftly blends country, blues, southern rock, and even gospel to create a sound and experience that has literally brought every audience to its feet. This new sound, along with her warm and soulful spirit, catapulted her into a community of change, with her doing more than breaking ground - she’s shattering it. It’s a serendipitous realization that Marks was meant to be here, at this time, in this moment, for good. After releasing her critically-acclaimed album, Our Country (via Redtone Records) in March 2021, Marks dove head first into an industry that previously never fully embraced her. She closed out 2021 with her EP release, Race Records, which shined a light on the arbitrary divisions forced upon artists and audiences in the early days of music marketing in the 1940s. In January of this year, Marks was named to CMT’s Next Women of Country Class of 2022 and by April, she stood alongside five other artists and managers chosen to participate in the inaugural Equal Access Development Program, a program designed by mtheory and CMT to foster and support marginalized communities underrepresented in the genre of country music. Now more than ever, the change needed is beginning to come to fruition; a change Marks feared she wouldn’t bear witness to in her existence: “I get emotional around it, because I didn’t think I would see any of this in my lifetime,” Marks says. Nearly one year after the release of Our Country, Marks released the first single, “Feel Like Going Home” (March 25, 2022), from her forthcoming project of the same name, due this fall. The lyrics sing, “Rest for the wanderer who never more shall roam.” For Marks, the time to reclaim her roots that were planted long ago is now, a powerful reconnection that can be felt in every note. No longer a wanderer, Marks has returned to her true self after years of trying to figure out her place in the world and in her first true love: music. Feel Like Going Home is an amalgamation of where Marks has been and where she is going. What she has learned and what she wants to teach. It’s an innermost look at the ebb and flow of her past, present, and future. It’s the stories she wants to tell but hasn’t been able to speak into existence ever before. The messages are profound: healing, restoration, and distinctly individual. Feel Like Going Home will be released on October 14, 2022.
GRAMMY-nominated trumpeter, composer, producer, and bandleader Theo Croker continues to redefine the possibilities of modern jazz with his new album, DREAM MANIFEST (Dom Recs / Fat Beats, June 13). Hailed by the LA Times as “a path to jazz greatness,” Croker’s latest work is an immersive journey where jazz, experimental hip-hop, and cosmic soul collide — the result of an artist unbound by genre and led only by creative vision. With singles like the high-energy “We Still Wanna Dance” (produced by D’LEAU), the soul-laced “High Vibrations” (featuring Malaya), and the hypnotic “Crystal Waterfalls,” Croker shapes a sonic world that is both timeless and of the moment (Wall Street Journal). His unmistakable air of chill, as NPR notes, comes from “a clear musical approach and determination” — qualities that have made him a standout collaborator for artists like Ari Lennox, Common, J. Cole, Jill Scott, and Wyclef Jean, and a magnetic performer on stages from NPR’s Tiny Desk to The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Croker approaches live performance with the vision of a producer and the spontaneity of a jazz artist. As DownBeat writes, he “layers music and lyrics with the deft touch of a hip-hop producer and the spontaneity of a jazz trumpeter.” From underground clubs to global festival stages, his sets unfold like cinematic suites — immersive, dynamic, and emotionally tuned to the room. His trumpet acts as both a melodic voice and a textural force, seamlessly woven into a production landscape rich with samples, synths, and sound design — all performed live with his acoustic ensemble. As VICE notes, Croker is known for pushing the boundaries of jazz, neo-soul, and hip-hop, crafting a sound that defies traditional genre classifications. That expansive approach was on full display in February 2025, when he premiered Dream Manifest live at London’s iconic Barbican Theatre in collaboration with designer Nicholas Daley. The Evening Standard called it “jazz, just not as we know it,” and Jazzwise described it as “a triumph,” praising Croker’s emotional depth, total stage control, and hinting at “a lot more to come from this assured bandleader.”