A multiple Grammy-winning keyboardist from Texas, he works in a variety of styles from instrumental jazz to gospel to hip-hop and R&B. He emerged in the 1990s by building his reputation as a session player and his willingness and ability to be a subtle part of each band. He performs with the jazz fusion phenomenon, Snarky Puppy, as well as a new trio project he has put together called Three-O. He has also worked with Erykah Badu, Timbaland, Kirk Franklin, and Chaka Khan.
"One thing I don't do, which I probably should do -- and if you're listening, this is really a bad habit -- is, I don't really rehearse before I go into the studio. I kind of want everything to be raw."
"I like the raw feeling of it. I like, sometimes I like the mistakes -- especially in a day and time where so much music is computer generated."
"To me, learning is everything."
"There's no reason for competition. The reason why competition is really, really, really pointless is because life is too short."
"It wasn't about making money. It wasn't about livin' the high life. It wasn't about all the other stuff. It was really just about making music, having fun..."
"Others have seen what's inside of me that was able to be manifested for them. I'm not being funny... I really just wanted to see what was inside of me to manifest for myself."
"We landed in Johannesburg the day that Nelson Mandela passed."
"Lotus"
"The Yellow Jacket"
Bonus audio content with Shaun Martin