Theo Croker, Star People Nation (Sony) Release date: May 17
Trumpeter/composer Theo Croker’s unique sound blends contemporary beats with the jazz tradition of his grandfather Don Cheatham and his mentor Donald Byrd. His new album, Star People Nation, took him 18 months to complete. He calls it an intimate exploration of the everyday rituals of blackness and a “self-reflective collection of provocative, powerfully passionate and boundary-busting compositions that speak to our greater, shared human existence.” Indeed, it may be his most personal release to date. This is because it finds him at the helm of production, songwriting and performance, often placing his horn in the role of the narrator and expressing himself via a personal interpretation of black American music that has taken him thirty years to perfect. “I’m embracing my own multi-cultural-ness within my blackness,” Croker explains. “I’m embracing my instrument, my story and who I am as a player and composer for the first