BLU Jazz+'s Upcoming Shows
Tue, Jun 16
Fri, Jun 19
Friday, June 19th, Cleveland drummer, Gabe Jones, brings his freshly squeezed jazz quintet to BLU! Expect a night full of creative improvisation, heart-pounding rhythms, and the kind of passion that brings the best of the local jazz scene to life!
Doors: 7:00pm
Show: 8:00pm
Tickets: General Admission ($20 in advance, $25 day of show)
Featuring:
Gabe Jones - drums and percussion
Cam Burton - keys
Everette Clark Jr. - bass
Lontrele Benford - guitar
Ronelle Regis - saxophone
Kayce White - vocals
Gabrielle Barnes - vocals
Kourtney Jones - vocals
Sat, Jun 20
Keyboardist, Cam Burton, brings his group After Service to BLU for their debut performance, Saturday, June 20th!
Doors: 7:00pm
Show: 8:00pm
Tickets: General Admission ($20 in advance, $25 day of show)
After Service is more than a band name it’s a feeling. Inspired by the moments after church lets out, when the music still lingers in the air, kids run through the aisles, conversations fill the parking lot, and community feels alive. It captures the energy of being raised in church: the laughter, the movement, the sound checks turning into jam sessions, and the memories made long after the final song.
Blending gospel roots with modern soul, R&B, and live musicianship, After Service represents the culture built around the music just as much as the music itself - raw emotion, fellowship, rhythm, and freedom.
Thu, Jun 25
Thursday, June 25th, trumpeter and local jazz hero, Tommy Lehman, assembles the cats for a night of original music via The Common Thread!
Featuring:
Johnny Cochran- tenor/soprano sax
Andru Dennis - Piano
Kip Reed - Bass
Zaire Darden - Drums
Tommy Lehman - Trumpet/Flugelhorn
Doors: 7:00pm
Show: 8:00pm
Tickets: $20 General Admission
Tommy Lehman is a trumpeter, vocalist, composer/arranger, bandleader, and educator based in Northeast Ohio. Coming from a musical family with a lineage that includes lifelong music educators, professional musicians, and music curators, Lehman was immersed in the arts from a young age, whether at church, school, or home.
Lehman holds an associate degree from the Jazz Studies Department at Cuyahoga Community College, a bachelor’s degree from the Hartt School of Music, and a master’s degree from Cleveland State University. Since completing his education, Lehman has released two studio albums, Faith > Fear and Uplift, which feature a wide array of musicians from the Northeast Ohio area.
In addition to leading his own projects, he is a dedicated member of ensembles such as Anthony Taddeo’s Alla Boara, Chris Coles’ Gleam, Chris Coles’ Nine Lives Project, Nathan-Paul & The Admirables, and JT’s Electric Blackout. Lehman’s other notable collaborations include Alice in Wonderland with the Cleveland Ballet Company, Alright? with choreographer Dominick Moore-Dunson, Nick Cave’s Heard: Akron at the Akron Art Museum, Dan Wilson’s Things Eternal, and Black Nativity presented by The Karamu House at Playhouse Square.
Lehman has also had the distinct pleasure of being featured in performances and recordings alongside artists such as Ken Peplowski, Orrin Evans, Roger Humphries, Jamey Haddad, Nat Reeves, Steve Davis, Sean Jones, Byron Stripling, Steve Carrington, the Columbus Jazz Orchestra, the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra, Vanessa Rubin, Barbara Rosene, Bobby Selvaggio, Jerome Jennings, and AJ Johnson
Fri, Jun 26
Sat, Jun 27
Saturday, June 27th, Akron native, Joey Skoch returns to his hometown via Chicago with DC & The Love!
Doors: 7:00pm
Show: 8:00pm
Tickets: General Admission ($20 in advance, $25 at the door)
A Chicago-based band led by songwriter and legendary bass player Dennis Carroll, DC & The Love brings together a group of premier musicians celebrated for their superb musicianship and originality. Featuring Dennis Carroll’s genre-defying music, ear-catching melodies and poignant lyrics, DC & The Love has evolved into one of the most exciting and cutting-edge bands in the country, headlining last summer's Chicago Jazz Fest, San Francisco's Black Cat, and the Rootabaga Jazz Festival, all while recording their first EP titled “Go Up.” It’s music. It’s love. DC & The Love.
Tue, Jun 30
Thu, Jul 02
EMP takes a stop at Blu Jazz during their Summer of EMP Trio series and is joined by a very special guest: YOU! Bring your axe and join EMP as they host Blu Jazz's Thursday night session. Don't miss this opportunity to see the original EMP Trio perform one last time at Blu before they all head their separate ways for their next chapter.
Doors: 6:00pm
Show: 7:00pm
Tickets: $10 General Admission (supports our local artists!)
First set: EMP Trio
Second set: Jam Session
Keys - Luca Albano
Bass - Thomas Johnston
Drums - Evan Michael Palermo
Luca Albano was born in Rome, Italy, and started his piano studies there in 2008. Since then, he and his family moved to Rochester, NY, where he spent 9 years studying classical piano with Mrs. Harriet Zimmerman in the pre-collegiate program at the Eastman Community Music School. Now a student at BGSU since 2022, he is majoring in classical piano performance and minoring in jazz studies with Dr. Solungga Liu and Professor Ariel Kasler respectively.
Thomas Johnston is an Australian-born multi-instrumentalist and composer. Thomas composes all kinds of works of varying styles and genres for different chamber ensembles, jazz bands, wind ensembles, and orchestral ensembles. He currently is studying music composition and jazz studies at Bowling Green State University. His teachers include Dr. Christopher Dietz, Ariel Kasler, and Aidan Plank. He can often be seen playing out with the EMP group, as well as a sought out music director and pit musician all across Ohio.
Evan Michael Palermo is a Cleveland native who is currently a 4th year student at Bowling Green State University. Through the music, Evan has been heard in major cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Cleveland, Toledo, Detroit, Paris, and more. Evan has also had the opportunity to study, create, and perform with some of the best in the craft such as Marvin "Smitty" Smith, John Riley, Ulysses Owens Jr, Stephan Crump, Jacques Lesure, Steve Kortyka, David Bixler, Dan Piccolo, Harrison Roth and many more. Through his 4 years of being a professional musician, Evan has worked freelance for major establishments such as Cedar Point, while continuing to be deeply rooted in the Cleveland and Toledo music scene. Evan can be heard regularly through his projects in the Cleveland theatre scene as a freelance percussionist, the Cleveland rock scene through Rellick, and the Ohio jazz scene through EMP.