Watch Tiffany Austin's Performance
Tiffany Austin
Unbroken is both a timeless meditation on African-American culture’s extraordinary resilience and an all-too-timely response to the reenergized forces seeking to degrade and deny that legacy. Produced by Grammy Award-winning jazz champion Richard Seidel, the album features arrangements by trombonist Mitch Butler. He’s joined by a stellar cast of jazz veterans, including pianist Cyrus Chestnut, bassist Rodney Whitaker, drummer Carl Allen, and tenor saxophonist Teodross Avery, along with young trumpeter Ashlin Parker.
Rather than separating African-American music into kindred tributaries, Austin plunges into the whole river of sound that’s sustained black life in America since before the nation’s founding. In many ways, she’s contesting what vocalist Gregory Porter has called “musical genocide” with a soul-steeped affirmation that embraces blues and swing, spirituals and R&B, bebop, post-bop, and her own Louisiana Creole heritage.
“I’ve experienced multiple instances of people trying to separate blues from jazz,” Austin says. “It’s kind of maddening. How can you divide the music that comes from the same diaspora, the same spirit? The idea behind this album is that the African-American spirit remains unbroken. After all of the things we go through we’re still here, joyfully creating great art and great music.”
With a series of prestigious gigs and residencies, Austin quickly gained attention as the most exciting new voice in the region. Performing a program of songs associated with Hoagy Carmichael led to her 2015 debut Nothing But Soul, the album that catapulted her into national prominence. With Unbroken, Austin makes it clear that she’s far more than a beautiful voice. Claiming her cultural birthright, she’s an artist drawing nourishment from all of jazz’s roots.
Kevin Goldberg
Kevin Goldberg holds a firm belief that music drives social change and is committed to creating a better world through musical collaboration.
Kevin’s musical education began as early as age two, when his father taught him to improvise on the piano--this quickly grew into a passion that spread into every aspect of his life.
As a musician, he has spent decades honing a unique sound that defies category, and dedicates his time to connecting with audiences in the SF Bay Area and around the world. Kevin has studied and performed with such luminaries as Tammy L. Hall, Denise Perrier, Linda Tillery, Tiffany Austin, Destiny Muhammad, Mia Pixley, Kenny Washington, Bruce Forman, Michael Zilber, and many others, and shared stages with the likes of Thomas Mapfumo, José James, Tank & the Bangas, and Bridge City Sinners.
As a leader and people person, Kevin has developed an internal mentorship program for a global company, mediated difficult conversations at Bay Area nonprofits, taught LEGO engineering classes to elementary schoolers, and even delivered flowers by bicycle.
In addition to his collaborations with Gage & Gold, Piwai, Lil' Elephant, Solate, and Wayfairy, Kevin can be heard holding space on the low end in jazz, soul, and fusion projects throughout the Bay Area.
Kevin holds a BS in Astrophysics from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a leadership certificate from the Co-active Training Institute.