At a time when Jazz music could truly use a boost in listenership, singer Tony Hightower is on a mission to be the bridge to help a younger generation of appreciators cro
At a time when Jazz music could truly use a boost in listenership, singer Tony Hightower is on a mission to be the bridge to help a younger generation of appreciators crossover. With his sophomore album LEGACY entering the marketplace in June 2022, all-around singer/entertainer Hightower - a protégé of the late Freddy Cole - is leveraging his R&B and Hip-Hop roots to entice more young people to dig jazz.
RESPECTED HIP-HOP / R&B DRUMMER FOR OUTKAST - JIMMY JAM & TERRY LEWIS - LIONEL RITCHIE, GOODIE MOB AND OTHERS
"I want young people to know that Jazz is not old - Jazz is cool as a mug," Hightower enthuses! "So many of your childhood memories from the movies, television, and cartoons to some of the music you listen to on the radio - especially Hip Hop of the `90s were full of jazz or influenced by it - and you may not have even known it.
"Good melody and grooves are good melodies and grooves no matter what genre. Growing up in the Hip Hop and R&B generation myself, I was still listening to Jazz - real jazz. You are hearing more of it in my new record than ever before. I intend to merge the two worlds - retaining the integrity, of course, but allowing the appeal to expand. The audience can't all be older or of a certain demographic. I believe that if artists such as myself and Jazzmeia Horn can persuade listeners to dig us, they may reach back to appreciate the singers that influenced us. That will be beneficial to them and Jazz itself."
HIGHTOWER HAS PERFORMED IN VARIOUS Tyler Perry MOVIES TV SHOWS & STAGE PRODUCTIONS
"I didn't have a choice about doing this music," Hightower confesses. "My mother, Theresa Hightower, lived her life onstage. She was a fiery and versatile vocal pro by age 16 and had me when she was 19. So, you could say I've been performing since the womb." Growing up under a local legend mother - a Funk-Rocker who could sing anything and mentored many singers coming behind her - Tony learned music first-hand from Bobby Blue Bland and the Platters to Mother's Finest.
Tony Hightower Docuseries
TONY HIGHTOWER'S NEW RECORDING -- LEGACY -- DEBUTS FRIDAY, JUNE 24TH
https://www.thetonyhightower.com/
SINGER TONY HIGHTOWER IN CONCERT
FRIDAY, JUNE 17, 2022
Friday Jazz @ The High Museum of Art
1280 Peachtree Street, NE
Atlanta, GA 30309
Showtimes: 6pm - 10pm ET
Members: Free
Non-members: $25
https://high.org/Program/friday-jazz/
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