What should the omnivorous young jazz mainstream sound like today? One beguiling answer can be found in the music of Julius Rodriguez, a brilliant multi-instrumentalist who just released Evergreen, his second album for Verve, which synthesizes elements of jazz, R&B, gospel, funk, even electro-pop. “I see it all as different extensions of me,” Rodriguez tells us in a lively conversation that touches on his divergent aims for a studio album and a live show; the essential qualities he shares with his creative cohort; and the way that his New York upbringing now converges with his Los Angeles lifestyle, musically. We’ll also hear excerpts of an exclusive performance captured by WRTI at Notsolatin in South Philadelphia, on Rodriguez’s first tour.
More to Explore:
- WRTI: Live at Notsolatin (YouTube premiere, June 27 at 11 a.m. EDT)
- NY Times: A Prodigy of Jazz Clubs Explores Other Stages
- NPR: Julius Rodriguez, a young pianist fusing (all) the music from inside-out
