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Braxton Cook
"I feel a lot," says Braxton Cook, the genre-shifting musician. "I'm a deeply emotional person. I just love. You know what I mean? Like, I love my family. I love my people. I love my friends. I love music. I have a belief that things can and will be better." His latest album, Who Are You When No One Is Watching? (out February 24, 2023, Nettwerk Music Group) holds up a mirror to ourselves and the society around us. It's at once confrontational, thoughtful, sentimental. "People need to see themselves, to some degree. Even if I'm speaking about tragedy, there's still that glimmer of hope I infuse in my music." Which is to say, Who Are You When No One Is Watching? is also very much a thing of beauty.
This is expected of Cook. His acumen as a saxophonist is legend and frequently elicits descriptors such as "virtuoso" and "prodigy" (see: The New Yorker, Jazz Times, FADER). He's played with Rihanna, toured with Solange Knowles, performed for Quincy Jones. He is a Juilliard graduate (from an already overachieving family: Mom was a classical pianist, dad a Georgetown professor) and even an Emmy winner (for a John Coltrane mini-doc, produced by Vox). At face value, he is an undisputed jazz wunderkind. But with Who Are You When No One Is Watching? it's clear that Cook — who mingles R&B, soul, funk, hip hop into a foundation of jazz — is also very much a chronicler and shaper of modern culture.
Right out of the gate, Cook makes this clear. “MB (For Ma’Khia Bryant)" is a remembrance of the 16-year-old teen killed in 2021, by police in Columbus, Ohio. "Being in this country that is inherently racist, the role that you play is either looking the other way or sharing these stories," Cook says. He improvised the melody — an intentionally powerful way of capturing his gut reaction to the unfolding news — off of a set of loops from his friend, celebrated English drummer Moses Boyd. Instead of being a dirge, "MB" is even more heartbreaking: a shimmering, carefree fever dream of a young life, otherwise cut short.
Who Are You When No One Is Watching? journeys through hope and love and family — before ending a weightier note. "The Answer," an ethereal-soul take, is also a gut-punch. "Oh, I don’t know why / I can't find the answers / I don’t know why / Time's moving faster / I don’t know why / Are we moving backwards?" he sings. The track, which he wrote on the guitar, looks around us and feels an overwhelming sense of loss and grief. "There's something kind of melancholic about hearing a melody that repeats over and over again," he explains. "It's almost like a prayer."
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Braxton Cook: Who Are You When No One Is Watching?
![Read "Braxton Cook: Who Are You When No One Is Watching?" reviewed by Leo Sidran](https://s3.amazonaws.com/allaboutjazz/photos/profile/musician/3549fb65c4afb1801f0ad5549b090a9f.jpg)
by Leo Sidran
While almost everyone is sharing the most polished and curated versions of themselves, Braxton Cook is asking Who Are You When No One Is Watching?"Actually, as it turns out, it's a question he's asking of himself, and in a somewhat postmodern and ironic twist, he's doing it quite publicly on his new record, called (surprise!) Who Are You When No One Is Watching? which comes out February 24 on Nettwerk Records.Braxton Cook is an artist of ...
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by David A. Orthmann
Posi-Tone Records produces coherent projects and maintains high standards in part by keeping things in-house; that is, frequently drawing on a substantial roster of affiliated artists to serve on a particular leader's record. A case in point is Feel The Love, Farnell Newton's third release for the label. While Newton's measured, concise, full-toned trumpet stylings and five, melodically rich compositions are a large part of the record's appeal, there are other factors that stand out. By turns ...
read moreFarnell Newton: Feel The Love
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read moreTake Five With Braxton Cook
![Read "Take Five With Braxton Cook" reviewed by Braxton Cook](https://s3.amazonaws.com/allaboutjazz/photos/profile/musician/braxtoncook100.jpg)
by Braxton Cook
Meet Braxton Cook: As a young emerging saxophonist, Braxton Cook has already garnered several honors and accolades. While in high school, he had been honored to be one of 30 other high school musicians selected from a nationwide competition to participate in the 2009 Grammy Jazz ensemble, held during the same week as the Grammy Awards. During his freshman year at Georgetown University, Braxton was selected as NFAA's 2010 YoungARTS Finalist and participated in a fully-paid expense week in ...
read moreEmmy-Award Winning, Julliard-Trained Musician, Singer, Songwriter Braxton Cook Releases His Highly Anticipated Full-Length Album
![Emmy-Award Winning, Julliard-Trained Musician, Singer, Songwriter Braxton Cook Releases His Highly Anticipated Full-Length Album](https://s3.amazonaws.com/allaboutjazz/coverart/large/d9d3cef3b203920d0fcd9b722e0faf64.jpg)
Source:
Michael Ricci
Emmy Award-Winning, Julliard-trained jazz-R&B artist Braxton Cook released his highly anticipated fifth full-length album Who Are You When No One Is Watching? via Nettwerk. The 17-song odyssey is an exploration into what’s possible within the future of jazz, R&B, soul, and hip-hop. The title incites themes of perception and Braxton addresses viewpoints on race injustice, love in the media, marriage, fatherhood, and what it means to succeed in our world. I feel a lot," says Braxton. I'm a deeply emotional ...
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Braxton Cook "Somewhere In Between" Saxophonist/Vocalist Jazz, R&B, Soul Hot, New Cutting Edge! Album Drop Date Jan. 31
![Braxton Cook "Somewhere In Between" Saxophonist/Vocalist Jazz, R&B, Soul Hot, New Cutting Edge! Album Drop Date Jan. 31](https://s3.amazonaws.com/allaboutjazz/coverart/large/braxtoncook_somwwhereinbetween.jpg)
Source:
Scott Thompson Public Relations
BRAXTON COOK Somewhere In Between Saxophonist/Vocalist Jazz, R&B, Soul Hot, New Cutting Edge! Available January 31 About Braxton Cook A 25-year-old with an old soul. Sunny personality, with homemade qualities, and a love of relationships between music passion, family and friends. Braxton's positivity acts as a way to create a message and theme in his music and overall brand. The concept behind this album is Love. I know that sounds cliché, but before jumping to conclusions, ...
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Braxton Cook's Debut Ep Release "Sketch"
![Braxton Cook's Debut Ep Release "Sketch"](https://s3.amazonaws.com/allaboutjazz/photos/profile/musician/3549fb65c4afb1801f0ad5549b090a9f.jpg)
Source:
Braxton Cook
On January 23, 2014, Braxton Cook released “Sketch” “He’s someone that you should keep your eye on. And don’t let his baby face fool you, as his talent is fully grown.” —Soul Bounce We found ourselves transfixed by the intelligent phrasing and rich tone of a young saxophonist named Braxton Cook." —Fritz Hahn, The Washington Post On January 23, 2014 emerging jazz artist, Braxton Cook, released his innovative EP entitled “Sketch”. This EP is five tracks of soulful, contemporary jazz ...
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"... we found ourselves transfixed by the intelligent phrasing and rich tone of a young saxophonist named Braxton Cook..." - [Fritz Hahn, The Washington Post]
"The inclusion of 21-year-old saxophonist Braxton Cook, who joined the group during its weekend engagement, was an inspired choice. Cook’s texture and tone channeled the spirit of John Coltrane’s “Alabama.” From his unwavering high notes to his forceful shouts of anger projected toward the audience..." - [Shannon Effinger, Downbeat Magazine]
…a refreshing jazz-R&B take on Black love…” – Billboard
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Indie
From: Who Are You When No One Is...By Braxton Cook
Indie
From: Who Are You When No One Is...By Braxton Cook
Wide Open (Summer of '95)
From: SketchBy Braxton Cook