School of Music Visiting Artist
Among the most versatile musicians and producers of his generation, Terrace Martin has worked extensively with the likes of Snoop Dogg, Lalah Hathaway, and Herbie Hancock, and as a leader has a Grammy nomination to show for his creative synthesis of jazz, R&B, and hip-hop. The first record the young Martin bought was EPMD's single "You Gots to Chill." While his love of hip-hop continued to grow, he also began to appreciate jazz through his father, a drummer. After playing keyboards for several years as a teenager, Martin picked up the saxophone and within a few years landed a gig with P. Diddy. Shortly thereafter, he began a long-term association with Snoop Dogg and gained a college scholarship via Jay Leno after the Tonight Show Band's Kevin Eubanks heard his playing. Released in June, Terrace Martin's "Pig Feet" arrived to a country on the brink; protesters flooded the streets and demanded justice for the senseless killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery.