NEXT JAZZ LEGACY'S NEXT UP

Next Jazz Legacy has unveiled its inaugural group of seven women and nonbinary awardees selected for the first edition of a three-year, national program launched by New Music USA and the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice.

The program, which enjoys major funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, will see the artists paired with master bandleaders for a year-long performance apprenticeship, creative mentorship and more. A $10k grant will be awarded per apprentice to use as an investment in the next steps of their careers.

Awardees Ivanna Cuesta, Lexi Hamner, Keyanna Hutchinson, Alexis Lombre, Anastassiya Petrova, Loke Risberg and Kalia Vandever will be paired with, respectively, Esperanza Spalding, Tia Fuller, Lizz Wright, Marcus Miller, Chris Potter, Linda May Han Oh and Mary Halvorson for apprenticeship, while Wayne Shorter, Bobby McFerrin, Brandon Ross, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Kris Davis, Bill Stewart and Jen Shyu will participate as creative mentors.

The awardees will also take part in business mentorships, joining quarterly learning cohorts led by NEA Jazz Master and Next Jazz Legacy Artistic Director Terri Lyne Carrington; receive a small scholarship for enrollment in a Berklee Online course; and promote their music via various presentations.

Awardees were chosen in an open-call process, with reviews from a panel chaired by Carrington that included Cassandra Wilson, Nicole Mitchell, Ambrose Akinmusire, Sean Jones and Miguel Zenón.

Over the next three years, Next Jazz Legacy will be guided by an advisory board featuring artists Sean Jones and Kris Davis, as well as representatives of institutions like NPR, WBGO, Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center and the New York Winter Jazz Festival.

For more info on the program, click here.