NoMad Jazz Festival 2025 Artists
Meet the artists taking the stage this summer, and get ready to experience their world- class talent.
Dabin Ryu Trio
featuring Joe Martin + Johnathan Blake
Award-winning pianist and composer Dabin Ryu brings cerebral depth and emotional richness to every performance. Born in Seoul and based in NYC, she’s a Juilliard Artist Diploma candidate with prior degrees from Berklee and Manhattan School of Music.
Ryu’s music reflects a profound grasp of jazz history, filtered through a highly personal lens. Winner of the 2024 UNISA International Piano Competition and the 2025 Jazz Gallery Residency Commission, she has played iconic venues like Smalls and Dizzy’s, and collaborated with greats like Ralph Peterson. With her trio, she explores original compositions with nuance, improvisational elegance, and magnetic presence.
Michael Mayo
Michael Mayo is a vocal force of nature. The son of two professional musicians, Mayo channels jazz, R&B, gospel, and experimental flair into a boundary-pushing sound. A graduate of the Thelonious Monk Institute and the New England Conservatory, Mayo has collaborated with Herbie Hancock, Jacob Collier, and more.
His debut album Bones (2021) and follow-up Fly (2024) showcase his stunning range, looped harmonies, and genre-crossing compositions. With charisma and creative fearlessness, Mayo is helping redefine what a jazz vocalist can be.
Roy Hargrove Big Band
The Roy Hargrove Big Band carries forward the legacy of the late, great Roy Hargrove – an iconic trumpeter whose genre-defying artistry earned him two Grammy Awards and global acclaim. Known for fusing hard bop with hip-hop, soul, and funk, Hargrove expanded the language of jazz for a new generation.
Originally formed for the Village Jazz Festival, his big band became a vital part of his expression, delivering performances full of swing, warmth, and masterful arrangements. Today, the Roy Hargrove Big Band continues to celebrate his indelible impact on modern music.
Lizz Wright
Lizz Wright is a celebrated American vocalist and songwriter renowned for her velvety alto voice, described by The New York Times as having “the texture of barrel-aged bourbon or butter-soft leather.” With a career spanning more than two decades, she blends gospel, soul, jazz, and folk into a signature style that transcends genre.
Raised in Georgia and steeped in church music, Wright connects deeply to human emotion through her music. From her acclaimed debut Salt to albums like Dreaming Wide Awake, The Orchard, Grace, and Leaning In, Wright’s work showcases lyrical storytelling and soul-baring resonance. Now at the helm of her own label, Blues & Greens Records, she continues to shape her artistic vision with fearless independence.
Caracas Trio
with Melissa Almaguer
The Caracas Trio weaves Afro- Venezuelan rhythms with jazz improvisation into a sound that’s as joyful as it is complex. Formed by Gabriel Chakarji (piano), Juan Diego Villalobos (vibraphone), and Daniel Prim (percussion), the trio blends Caribbean, Brazilian, and jazz influences with vocal interplay and high-energy grooves.
Each member is a powerhouse in their own right. Together, they form a group that is rhythmically sophisticated, harmonically rich, and full of Latin American heart.
Arta Jēkabsone
Latvian vocalist and composer Arta Jēkabsone infuses her jazz with Baltic soul. A graduate of the Riga Dome Choir School, she’s made waves internationally through masterclasses, competitions (like the Montreux Shure Jazz Voice Competition), and deeply personal recordings.
Her music blends Latvian folk influences with contemporary jazz expression, and she was honored with the Jazz Gallery Residency Commission in 2021. Her performances are equal parts intimate and daring – where storytelling, heritage, and innovation converge.
The Brandee Younger Trio
Brandee Younger is redefining the harp’s role in contemporary music, seamlessly weaving it into jazz, soul, and hip-hop. A fearless innovator, she made history as the first Black woman nominated for a Grammy® in Best Instrumental Composition and recently won the 2024 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Album for Brand New Life. She has worked with cultural icons including Common, Lauryn Hill, John Legend, Pharoah Sanders, and Christian McBride.
Deeply influenced by harp legends Alice Coltrane and Dorothy Ashby, Younger’s work is both a tribute and a bold evolution. Her music bridges tradition and modernity, championing the harp as a uniquely expressive voice. She is also on the faculty at NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development and The New School.
Ravi Coltrane
Ravi Coltrane is a Grammy-nominated saxophonist, composer, and bandleader who has carved a distinctive path in modern jazz. The son of John and Alice Coltrane, Ravi has never coasted on legacy – he had built his reputation on thoughtful, innovative playing and fearless exploration.
He’s released several acclaimed albums and produced his mother’s Translinear Light: The Music of Alice Coltrane, honoring tradition while pushing boundaries. With his quartet, Coltrane brings a blend of elegance, fire, and deep-rooted reverence to every performance.