The University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center will present Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2.
New Orleans native Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews is the bandleader and frontman of Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, a hard-edged funk band that employs hip-hop beats, rock dynamics and improvisation in a jazz tradition. Andrews has talent, natural charisma and a relentless drive to bridge music’s past and future. Together, Trombone Shorty and his band have toured the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia, Japan, Russia and Brazil.
His latest recording, “Say That to Say This,” comes as Andrews and his longtime band, featuring guitarist Pete Murano, bassist Mike Ballard and drummer Joey Peebles, continue their natural musical evolution. On a worldwide tour that is taking fans by storm, Trombone Shorty and his ensemble explore funk, rock, jazz and hip-hop with their own exciting, high-energy style. Tickets are $55.50, $46.50 and $36.50. Call 205-975-2787 or visit www.AlysStephens.org.
| Trombone Shorty and his ensemble explore funk, rock, jazz and hip-hop with their own exciting, high-energy style. Tickets are $55.50, $46.50 and $36.50. Call 205-975-2787 or visit www.AlysStephens.org. |
Andrews began his career as a bandleader at the young age of 6, toured internationally at 12, and spent his teens playing with various brass bands throughout New Orleans and touring worldwide with Lenny Kravitz. In 2010, as Trombone Shorty, he released the Grammy-nominated “Backatown,” followed in 2011 by “For True,” which topped Billboard Magazine’s Contemporary Jazz Chart for 12 weeks.
In 2012, he performed at the White House in honor of Black History Month with such music royalty as B.B. King, Mick Jagger, Jeff Beck, Booker T. Jones, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, and Gary Clark Jr. That year, Andrews also received the President’s Medal from Tulane University in recognition of his charitable work with the Trombone Shorty Foundation, which donates quality instruments to schools across New Orleans.
In January 2014, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue performed on the 56th annual Grammy Awards with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Mary Lambert, Madonna, and Queen Latifah. The band has made guest television appearances on “Conan,” “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” “Arsenio” and “Austin City Limits.” Trombone Shorty also played himself in a recurring role on the hit HBO series “Treme.”