Presented by The Harlem Arts Salon, Porter and Doncker to lead best of art, music, poetry; actor Danny Glover to appear
Gregory Porter is the next great male jazz singer.” (NPR Music)
(New York, NY) – February 24, 2015 – Independent Music Promotions today announced that Gregory Porter, dubbed by NPR the “next great male jazz singer,” and New York City blues legend Tomás Doncker will headline The Harlem Arts Salon’s all-star benefit fundraiser for The Gloster Project on Sunday, March 8, 2015 from 2:00 – 6:00 PM. The benefit concert will take place at MIST Harlem, located at 46 West 116 Street in Harlem, and will feature art, music, poetry, a buffet lunch, an exhibition/silent auction, and a special appearance by Danny Glover. All proceeds from the $125 donation will benefit The Gloster Project, a free arts camp for kids in rural Southwestern Mississippi. Porter and Doncker lead a lineup that features some of the best blues and jazz artists in New York City, including Afrikan Sciences, David A. Barnes, Hamiet Bluiett, Will Calhoun, Rachel Eliza Griffiths, Oliver Lake, Kellindo Parker, Mark Peterson, Queen Esther, Donald Smith, Quincy Troupe, and Randy Weston. Kelvyn Bell is the musical director of The Harlem Arts Salon. The Gloster Project is an initiative of Margaret Porter Troupe Arts Projects. More information on the entire event is available on MIST Harlem’s official site.
Porter wields one of the most captivating baritone voices in music today. The New York Times’ Nate Chinen wrote: “Gregory Porter has most of what you want in a male jazz singer, and maybe a thing or two you didn’t know you wanted.” Jazz singer Dee Dee Bridgewater praised Porter in the pages of Jazz Times by saying, “We haven’t had a male singer like him in a long time. He’s such a wonderful writer. He’s a storyteller.” In 2010, Porter released his debut album Water (Motéma Music), which earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album. His sophomore album Be Good followed in 2012 and earned him his second Grammy nomination for Best Traditional R&B Performance. Liquid Spirit, Porter’s Blue Note Records debut, arrives on the heels of two critically acclaimed indie label albums that quickly propelled Porter to the upper echelon of contemporary male jazz singers and earned
him two Grammy nominations.
Despite having now recorded and shared the stage with the likes of Van Morrison, Wynton Marsalis, and Christian McBride, Porter remains grounded and humbled by all the new accolades: “Sometimes I haven’t had a chance to absorb and enjoy some of the audiences that I’ve been in front of, especially icons such as Wynton and Herbie.” While Porter is deserving of their attention, he remains humble: “They have given me so much open-armed love – I couldn’t even fathom it two years ago.”
An integral member of New York City’s downtown “no wave” scene in the early 1980’s, Doncker cut his teeth as a guitarist with groups such as James Chance & The Contortions, Defunkt, J. Walter Negro & The Loose Jointz, and many more. He eventually produced studio and songwriting sessions with Bootsy Collins, Yoko Ono, Grammy-nominated reggae vocal group The Itals, and Grammy-winning producer Prince Charles Alexander. Doncker has continued to work with an A-list of iconic musicians, including Ivan Neville, Bonnie Raitt, former P-Funk keyboardist Amp Fiddler, and 2013 Grammy nominee Shamekia Copeland. Doncker and his True Groove label have been featured in a wide range of prominent media, including CNN, Guitar World, The Source, and Huffington Post.
Doncker recently released Big Apple Blues, his second collaborative effort with poet Yusef Komunyakaa. The first was The Mercy Suite, which featured performances by Meshell Ndegeocello, Chocolate Genius, and Living Colour lead singer Corey Glover. More information on the project is available on the official website] of Doncker’s record label, True Groove.
For more information on The Gloster Project benefit, visit True Groove’s social media: OFFICIAL SITE | FACEBOOK
