Oct 28, 2025 10:47 AM
In Memoriam: Jack DeJohnette, 1942–2025
Jack DeJohnette, a bold and resourceful drummer and NEA Jazz Master who forged a unique vocabulary on the kit over his…
George Coleman (left) and Keith Jarrett are among the 2023 JJA Lifetime Achievement in Jazz Award finalists.
(Photo: Courtesy JJA)The Jazz Journalists Association has announced finalists for the 2023 JJA Jazz Awards, the organization’s 28th annual celebration of excellence in jazz and jazz journalism. Of thousands of nominees proposed for awards in 49 categories by professional voting members of the JJA in first-round submissions, dozens claiming the most mentions are presented to those same JJA members now as finalists for consideration of their works in calendar year 2022. Photos, album art, jazz documentaries, books, podcasts, publications and streaming platforms are among the media categories, while awards for recordings and performance range from vocalists and big bands to players of every kind of instrument, including electronics.
Lifetime Achievement Awards for Jazz Journalism cite Nate Chinen, Ashley Kahn, Will Friedwald and Gene Seymour. Lifetime Achievement in Jazz finalists are tenor sax standard-bearer George Coleman, solo and ensemble piano recitalist Keith Jarrett, wind and reeds playing composer/bandleader Charles Lloyd and composer/trumpeter/educator Wadada Leo Smith.
Records nominated for best of the year are Ghost Song (Nonesuch), by Cécile McLorin Salvant; Música De Las Américas (Miel Music), by Miguel Zenón Quartet; New Standards Vol. 1 (Candid), by Terri Lyne Carrington; and Mesmerism (Yeros7 Music), by Tyshawn Sorey Trio.
Zenón, Carrington and Lloyd have been nominated for the Musician of the Year award, along with guitarist Mary Halvorson.
See all nominees for the journalism and media categories here; nominees for jazz recordings and performance awards here.
Winners of the 2023 JJA Jazz Awards will be announced May 17, with an interactive online experience with awardees to be scheduled, along with in-person presentations. For further information including sponsorship opportunities for the JJA Jazz Awards, contact association president Howard Mandel, president@jazzjournalists.org. DB
Jack DeJohnette boasted a musical resume that was as long as it was fearsome.
Oct 28, 2025 10:47 AM
Jack DeJohnette, a bold and resourceful drummer and NEA Jazz Master who forged a unique vocabulary on the kit over his…
D’Angelo achieved commercial and critical success experimenting with a fusion of jazz, funk, soul, R&B and hip-hop.
Oct 14, 2025 1:47 PM
D’Angelo, a Grammy-winning R&B and neo-soul singer, guitarist and pianist who exerted a profound influence on 21st…
To see the complete list of nominations for the 2026 Grammy Awards, go to grammy.com.
Nov 11, 2025 12:35 PM
The nominations for the 2026 Grammy Awards are in, with plenty to smile about for the worlds of jazz, blues and beyond.…
Drummond was cherished by generations of mainstream jazz listeners and bandleaders for his authoritative tonal presence, a defining quality of his style most apparent when he played his instrument unamplified.
Nov 4, 2025 11:39 AM
Ray Drummond, a first-call bassist who appeared on hundreds of albums as a sideman for some of the top names in jazz…
Flea has returned to his first instrument — the trumpet — and assembled a dream band of jazz musicians to record a new album.
Dec 2, 2025 2:01 AM
After a nearly five-decade career as one of his generation’s defining rock bassists, Flea has returned to his first…
