Friday, Sept 12, 2025 Masterclass | 5 PM – 8 PM
“Jazz, Tech & The Future – Shaping the Sound of Now”
Walker West Music Academy
650 Marshall Avenue, Saint Paul, MN 55104
Step into the future of jazz with Grammy-winning trumpeter Kris Johnson, Grammy-winning producer Qmillion Riddim (Robert Glasper’s Black Radio), and the genre-blending grooves of Room3Jazz.
In this immersive 3-hour masterclass, explore the intersections of jazz, modern harmony, hip-hop, R&B, and electronic music through live performance, arranging, production, sound design, and improvisation. This masterclass is for musicians, producers, sound engineers, composers, and arrangers.
Seating is limited, so apply today for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
Artists
Room3Jazz
Room3 is a jazz fusion group blending bebop, contemporary jazz, prog rock, and funk into a sound that’s both rooted and experimental. Based in Minneapolis, the five-piece band features RAWTWHYLAH (Colin Mitchell) on drums, Beck Madson on bass, Eli Awada on keyboards, Jovon Williams on tenor and soprano saxophone, and Evan Espinoza on percussion.
Since forming in 2023, Room3 has become a standout in the Twin Cities music scene, with performances at the Dakota Jazz Club, Berlin MPLS, First Avenue’s Turf Club, and more. In 2024, they were selected for First Avenue’s “Best New Bands” showcase at the venue’s iconic Mainroom.
Their debut album, Bill’s Garden, featuring 11 original compositions, will be released in April 2025, marking a bold first chapter for one of the most exciting new voices in jazz fusion.
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Q Million
Keith Lewis, professionally known as Qmillion Riddim, is a Grammy-winning producer, songwriter, musician, and mixing engineer whose career spans more than 25 years. His work includes collaborations with Robert Glasper, Seun Kuti, Jill Scott, Busta Rhymes, Beenie Man, Billy Preston, Toni Braxton, and many others, earning multiple Gold and Platinum awards.
His mixing on Robert Glasper Experiment’s Black Radio won the Grammy for Best R&B Album, followed by a second Grammy for Black Radio 2. As founder of Unseen Lab Recordings, Lewis has produced chart-topping hits in Jamaica and contributed music to numerous film and television projects.
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Kris Johnson
Kris Johnson is a Grammy-winning trumpeter, composer, arranger, film composer, and educator based in Detroit. His credits include six Grammy-nominated albums, including the 2024 Grammy-winning Basie Swings the Blues with the Count Basie Orchestra.
Johnson has toured internationally with Endea Owens and the Cookout, and previously with the Count Basie Orchestra from 2008–2019, performing at the Apollo Theater, Hollywood Bowl, Sydney Opera House, Kennedy Center, and more. His collaborators include Wynton Marsalis, Tony Bennett, Leslie Odom Jr., Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and Wycliffe Gordon.
As an educator, Johnson currently serves as Assistant Professor of Jazz Trumpet at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance.
