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Braxton Cook

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Braxton Cook
Cook performing with the Marquis Hill Blacktet in Amsterdam, 2019
Cook performing with the Marquis Hill Blacktet in Amsterdam, 2019
Background information
Birth nameBraxton Cook
Born (1991-03-27) March 27, 1991 (age 33)[1]
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.[2]
Genres
Occupations
  • Saxophonist
  • singer
  • songwriter
Instruments
Years active2014–present
Labels
Websitewww.braxtoncook.com

Braxton Cook (born March 27, 1991) is an American alto saxophonist and singer-songwriter. He has toured with jazz musicians Christian Scott, Christian McBride, and Marquis Hill, and performed with Jon Batiste, Mac Miller, and Rihanna.[1][4] In 2017, Fader named Cook a "jazz prodigy,"[5] and in 2018, Ebony listed him as one of the "top five jazz artists to watch."[2]

Early life

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Braxton Cook was born on March 27, 1991, in Boston, Massachusetts. After moving several times, his family settled in Silver Spring, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C., where he lived for most of his upbringing.[2]

Cook attended Springbrook High School and studied saxophone under the tutelage of Paul Carr. While there, he was one of 30 students in the United States to be selected for the 2009 Grammy jazz ensemble. He attended Georgetown University for two years, where he studied English with a concentration in African American Studies. As a freshman, he was named a 2010 YoungArts Finalist.[6]

In 2011, Cook transferred to the Juilliard School, where he studied jazz saxophone with Ron Blake and Steve Wilson.[6] In his first year at Juilliard, Cook attended a Donald Harrison concert, where he met Harrison's nephew, jazz trumpet player Christian Scott. Shortly afterward, Cook became a long-term member of Scott's touring band.[1]

Career

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Cook and Elena Pinderhughes performing at Newport Jazz Festival, 2024
Cook and Elena Pinderhughes performing at Newport Jazz Festival, 2024

Cook launched his solo career in 2014, self-releasing his debut EP Sketch. He also self-released the full-length album Braxton Cook Meets Butcher Brown in collaboration with American jazz band Butcher Brown in 2015, before signing with independent label Fresh Selects in 2016.[1] Cook has also been featured on several of Christian Scott's studio albums, including Stretch Music (2015), Diaspora (2017), and The Emancipation Procrastination (2017), the last of which was nominated for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album at the 61st Grammy Awards.[2]

In 2018, Cook was featured in a Vox video titled "The most feared song in jazz, explained", which received the Outstanding New Approaches: Arts, Lifestyle and Culture award at the 40th News and Documentary Emmy Awards. For his contributions to the video, Cook received an Emmy Awards certificate.[7]

In 2019, Cook performed alongside Jon Batiste on the soundtrack for Pixar's Soul, which won the Academy Award for Best Original Score.[4]

In May 2020, Cook was featured in a virtual Tiny Desk concert for NPR, which he performed from his home in New Jersey.[8] Without a band to support him due to social distancing, he used loops to support his guitar, vocals, and saxophone.[8] During the concert, Cook performed tracks from various albums including Somewhere in Between (2017) and Fire Sign (2020), as well as his "Hymn (for Trayvon Martin)", which he wrote to explore racism and police brutality.[8][9] He has also appeared as a sideman in Tiny Desk concerts featuring Christian Scott in 2015, Tom Misch in 2018, Phony Ppl in 2019, and Amaarae in 2023.[8][10]

Cook's former Juilliard roommate Jahaan Sweet used a vocal sample from Cook in the production of "Lavender Haze", the opening track on Taylor Swift's 2022 studio album Midnights. Cook was credited as an additional producer on the track, which he did not hear until the album was released.[11] Cook and Sweet had previously collaborated on the production of the song "Tryna Be" from Giveon's 2022 studio album Give or Take.[12]

In December 2022, Cook announced the release of his fifth full-length studio album Who Are You When No One Is Watching on February 24, 2023, on Nettwerk.[13] BET listed the album as one of the most anticipated releases of 2023.[14]

Discography

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Studio albums

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  • Braxton Cook Meets Butcher Brown (self-released, 2015) (with Butcher Brown)
  • Somewhere In Between (Fresh Selects, 2017)
  • Somewhere In Between: Remixes & Outtakes (Fresh Selects, 2018)
  • No Doubt (self-released, 2018)
  • Fire Sign (self-released, 2020)
  • Who Are You When No One Is Watching (Nettwerk, 2023)

Extended plays

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  • Sketch (self-released, 2014)
  • Like You Used To (self-released, 2018)
  • Black Mona Lisa (self-released, 2022)

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Kellman, Andy. "Braxton Cook Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d "MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology - Braxton Cook". Arts at MIT. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  3. ^ Liptak, Carena (October 16, 2022). "Positive Vibes Only: Saxophonist Braxton Cook Premieres Smooth New Song "Indie" With A Luminous Living Room Performance". www.grammy.com. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Palmer, Penny (June 10, 2022). "New Signing Braxton Cook Shares "The Same (feat. Marquis Hill)"". Nettwerk Music Group. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  5. ^ Starling, Lakin (April 5, 2017). "Jazz Marvel Braxton Cook Is Sure About Love On "You're The One"". The FADER. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Braxton Cook musician - All About Jazz". All About Jazz Musicians. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  7. ^ Cook, Braxton (August 12, 2020). "Braxton Cook on Instagram: "My Emmy certificate just came in the mail!! ✨✨This was for the @voxdotcom Earworm video series on "Giant Steps: The Most Feared Song in Jazz." Swipe right 👉🏾 for the vid!! S/O to @estellecaswell and @its_adamneely"". Instagram. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d Madden, Sidney (May 8, 2020). "Braxton Cook Plays A Jazz-Infused Tiny Desk From Home". NPR. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  9. ^ "Braxton Cook Delivers His Best at the Red Room". WHRB 95.3FM Harvard Radio Broadcasting. November 20, 2019. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
  10. ^ Madden, Sidney (June 22, 2023). "Amaarae: Tiny Desk Concert". NPR Music. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  11. ^ Sinnenberg, Jackson (October 31, 2022). "How Did a D.C. Jazz Musician End Up on Taylor Swift's New Album?". District Fray. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  12. ^ Rouhani, Neena (August 25, 2022). "In Demand: How Producer Jahaan Sweet Became a Secret Weapon For Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé & More". Billboard. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  13. ^ Chammas, George (December 13, 2022). "Emmy-Award Winning Juilliard-Trained Musician Braxton Cook Announces New Album + 2023 Headline Tour". Nettwerk Music Group. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  14. ^ Hunte, Justin. "The Top 23 Most Anticipated Albums of 2023". BET. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
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