T.K. Blue presents "Planet Bluu" on International Jazz Day FREE 4/30/25!

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About this Event:

On April 30 th - International Jazz Day, the T. K. (Talib Kibwe) Blue saxophonist and

flautist Trio perform music from T. K.’s recent album "Planet Bluu" and also

recognize the 99th birthday anniversary and musical contributions of T. K.’s mentor,

NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) Jazz Master pianist Dr. Randy Weston, for

whom T. K. was music director and arranger for many years. T.K. will also salute

his friend, Benny Powell, trombonist for years with the Count Basie Orchestra and

who also performed at the Cornerstone Restaurant in Metuchen years ago!

T.K. Blue---saxophonist, flautist, composer, arranger, and educator---was born and

raised in New York City, studying jazz in his youth at well-recognized music

organizations of the time, including Jazzmobile, Jazz interactions, The Henry

Street Settlement and the Muse. Blue learned to play flute in high school and

then the saxophone in college. T. K. earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Music and

Psychology from New York University and a Master’s Degree in Music Education

from Teacher’s College at Columbia University. He taught at Roosevelt Pre -K,

Suffolk Community College, Montclair State. University and Long Island University

LIU – Post where he was the Director of Jazz Studies yrs 2007 to 2014. He currently also

offers workshops for high school students and band directors. T.K. Blue serves as a jazz

adjudicator at high school jazz band competitions, including

this year’s NJAJE High School Jazz Band State Finals Competition on Saturday, May

3, 2025 at JP Stevens High School in Edison, NJ.

T. K. Blue has 19 recordings under his name with Planet Bluu being the most

recent. “This latest creative project is being released on the heels of him (Blue)

performing with the Herbie Hancock Institute at the 2024 International Jazz Day

Concert in Tangiers, Morocco. I also enjoyed The Bluu Seas of Our Tomorrows.

Great title and excellent composition where T. K. Blue soars and shines on his

saxophone. He transports me back to the John Coltrane heyday with this

wonderful arrangement.”-Dee Dee McNeil – Making A Scene, Sept. 19. 2024.

T.K.’s list of musicians with whom he has performed– in addition to Randy

Weston and Benny Powell -- is extensive and covers a wide variety of jazz styles.

Some of the musicians include: Don Cherry, Jaki Byard’s Apollo Stompers, Ted

Daniel’s Big Band, Abdullah Ibrahim, Miriam Makeba, Melba Liston, Dizzy

Gillespie, Russell Malone, Shahib Shahab, Benny Bailey, Mulgrew Miller, Arturo

O’Farrill, Stefon Harris, Carl Allen, Monty Alexander, Regina Carter, Warren Wolf

and many others.

T. K. Blue’s musical connection with Africa runs deep. Having lived close to 10

years in Paris, Blue was hired by the USIA to embark on three state department

tours of Africa. Blue’s musical journey unfolded in years 2019 and 2020 with his

12 th CD as a leader, entitled The Rhythms Continue, dedicated to two NEA Jazz

Masters, Dr. Randy Weston and trombonist/composer/arranger Melba Liston. T.

K. is featured in a documentary film about Randy Weston titled “An African Born

in America” which premiered in Dakar, Senegal in November 2021. On May 27,

2023, Blue performed at the Saint Louis Jazz Festival in Senegal with his Quartet

and then on June 19 th he performed in collaboration with the traditional musicians

of Morocco known as the Gnawa. They performed a concert at the American

Legation in Tangier, Morocco, which is the oldest foreign American diplomatic

post in the world and the only national monument outside the continental USA.

Last year on April 30, 2024, he performed at The International Jazz Day Concert

with the Herbie Hancock Institute in Tangiers, Morocco.

T. K. Blue performs regularly at venues on the East Coast including Minton’s

Playhouse, The Django, Smoke, The Rose Theater, The Kennedy Center, Chris Café, Zinc

Bar and others, as well as, recently in the Caribbean Islands of

Guadalope, Trinidad and Tobago.

T.K. Blue performs on the first Friday of each month at Brothers Smokehouse in

Ramsey, NJ at their Jazz Friday concerts. www.tkblue.com

Phot Credit: Adam Z and Art Photo

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