Sep 3, 2026 10:44 AM
In Memoriam: Cassandra Wilson, 1955–2026
Cassandra Wilson, a singer, songwriter and producer who was one of the most acclaimed and successful jazz vocalists of…
Harry Connick Jr. and his daughter Georgia, a filmmaker, are featured in the TV special “United We Sing: A Grammy Tribute To The Unsung Heroes,” airing on June 21.
(Photo: CBS.com)Harry Connick Jr., Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Jon Batiste, John Fogerty, Andra Day and Dave Matthews are among the musicians featured in the TV special “United We Sing: A Grammy Tribute To The Unsung Heroes,” airing on CBS on June 21 at 8 p.m. EST.
Connick is the host of the special, which chronicles a trip that he and his daughter Georgia, a filmmaker, took from their home in Connecticut to the pianist and singer’s hometown, New Orleans. During the trek, which they made in an RV, the Connicks make stops to listen to the stories of essential workers in healthcare, food preparation, sanitation, law enforcement, trucking and other fields that have remained in full operation during the pandemic.
The show culminates with musical performances in New Orleans, featuring Connick and other Crescent City artists, including Trombone Shorty and Irma Thomas.
The special—which also will be available via CBS All Access—will serve as a fundraiser for charities that support underserved children, such as No Kid Hungry and the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music in New Orleans, as well as to the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund, a charitable organization of the Recording Academy.
Among the other celebrities participating in the show are Oprah Winfrey, Jamie Foxx, Sandra Bullock, Renée Zellweger, Queen Latifah and Drew Brees. DB
Wilson’s ability to connect to audiences helped her to win two Grammy awards and multiple other accolades. She was named an NEA Jazz Master in 2022.
Sep 3, 2026 10:44 AM
Cassandra Wilson, a singer, songwriter and producer who was one of the most acclaimed and successful jazz vocalists of…
Bertoncini was a specialist and advocate for the nylon-string acoustic guitar, turning down high-profile opportunities that were unsuited to the sound and techniques that he used with that instrument.
Sep 1, 2026 11:06 AM
Gene Bertoncini, an esteemed jazz guitarist, composer, arranger and educator, died Aug. 29 at the Lillian Booth Actors…
A solo concert by saxophonist Joshua Redman will close the first night of the Hyde Park Jazz Festival on Sept. 26.
Sep 22, 2026 12:26 PM
The Hyde Park Jazz Festival will take place for the 20th time on the final weekend of September 2026. Beginning half…
“It was just that suddenly … I could hear it,” Ravi Coltrane said of an epiphany he experienced during his late teens regarding his father’s music. “And it was almost like a calling, like something saying, ‘Hey, man, come on. It’s time to get serious.’ And the first time you really tune in and dial in and focus like that, it can be very life-changing.”
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Editor’s Note: Tomorrow, Sept. 23, is the 100th anniversary of John Coltrane’s birth. In honor of the tenor and…
Camille Thurman took to the stage alongside bassist Kenny Davis and drummer Tommy Campbell for a rendition of Johnny Mercer’s “I’m An Old Cowhand” that recalled Rollins’ epochal 1957 trio outing Way Out West.
Oct 6, 2026 1:33 PM
As emcee Mark Ruffin noted at the commencement of an epic tribute to saxophonist Sonny Rollins at the Cathedral of…
