Jody Watley enjoys longevity through constant musical evolution
Chicago-born and Los Angeles-bred Jody Watley was always drawn to the stage, having performed at age 8 with her...
Chris Campbell is a broadcast personality/nationally-renowned tastemaker and host of the multi-genre electronic music program The Progressive Underground. He is also a correspondent for NPR (National Public Radio) curating global underground music for national segments such as "Heavy Rotation" and "Songs We Love." Campbell is the host of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s “Paradise Jazz Series,” “Concerts at the Cube,” and is co-host of the Aretha Franklin Amphitheatre’s “Jazzy Wednesdays Summer Concert Series.”
He has also hosted events including the Detroit International Jazz Festival, Charivari Detroit Electronic Music Fest and has curated/hosted Detroit Performs LIVE on WTVS-Channel 56 Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), along with hosting/moderating a variety of concerts, industry showcases, artist album releases, panel discussions, movie screenings, and press unveilings.
Campbell is also an author and music journalist who has written for national and international publications such as Smooth Jazz News, Upscale, and Examiner. He is a published author as his books “The Essential Neo-Soul” and “Essential Neo-Soul 2.0” spotlight the modern-day progressive soul music movement and are the only publications of their kind to cover the history of the modern/alternative soul community.
From Award-Winning Journalist to Recording Artist: the Musical Journey of Evrod Cassimy
From a young age, Evrod Cassimy gravitated to music, singing in his church’s choir and showing an early acumen for...
Groundbreaking Quartet Kraftwerk Forever Revolutionized Electronic Music
Spawned from the late 1960s German experimental music community, Kraftwerk was formed in Dusseldorf, West Germany, in 1970 by Ralf Hütter...
French Sister Act Les Nubians Melds International Influences
The story of Les Nubians is a global one. Throughout their discography, the duo has used their music to transmit...
Paul Randolph’s Melodic Grooves Transcend Genres
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to a musically minded mother and trombonist father, Paul Randolph began studying music, including guitar and...
From Stevie Wonder’s Backup Singer to Solo Star, Maysa Makes Waves
Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, jazz-soul singer/songwriter Maysa Leak was operatically trained and studied voice performance at Morgan State...
Kindred The Family Soul Brings Family Values to R&B
In the early 1990s, Aja Graydon and Fatin Dantzler were both were paying their dues in the music industry --...
The Roots Are a Genre of Their Own
The story of The Roots story begins at the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts where Ahmir...
Remembering Aaliyah, the Princess of R&B
Twenty years ago, on Aug. 25, 2001, Aaliyah Dana Haughton died in an airplane accident. Though only 22, Aaliyah left...
Globe-Trotting Performer Mahogany Jones Calls Detroit Home
From a young age, Charyse Lois Marshall, better known as Mahogany Jones, was engrossed in poetry, compiling hundreds of poems...
From Acid Jazz Pioneers to Electronic Music Trailblazers, Jamiroquai Forges New Roads
Robbie Drexhage Legendary UK acid jazz band Jamiroquai, a standout band of the funk and acid jazz movement of the...
Leaf Erikson Is Pushing Hip-Hop Forward With Throwback Sensibilities
Growing up in Detroit and surrounded by the sounds of Motown, Detroit-based rapper and wordsmith Corey Greenleaf, aka Leaf Erikson,...