Drummer

The prolific Chicago-based drummer, composer, and producer Makaya McCraven is a cultural synthesizer with a unique gift for blending past, present, and future into jazz-rooted 21st-century folk music. “McCraven has quietly become one of the best arguments for jazz’s vitality,” says The New York Times. “His ability to wrap his albums in the dark allure of a club show, the timeless texture of an old Folkways record, and the sonic layering of a hip-hop producer has turned Mr. McCraven into the most discussed young musician on a Chicago jazz scene teeming with fresh energy.”

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Makaya McCraven

Michigan Theater

Experience an extraordinary evening of musical innovation with Makaya McCraven and SHABAKA. McCraven, a visionary drummer and composer, will perform pieces from his latest album, In These Times, blending jazz, folk, and hip-hop in a genre-defying experience. SHABAKA, renowned for his work with bands like Sons of Kemet, the Comet is Coming, and SHABAKA and the Ancestors will showcase his newest flute-forward album, Perceive its Beauty, Acknowledge its Grace, offering a rich sound that spans cultures and traditions. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to witness two trailblazing artists pushing the boundaries of contemporary jazz music.

Makaya McCraven & SHABAKA

McCarter Theatre Center

Winner of the 2014 Thelonious Monk International Trumpet Competition, Chicago-born trumpeter Marquis Hill has, in a comparatively short time, established his well-deserved reputation as a leading figure among today’s crop of most adventurous jazz musicians. He returns with compositions from his new album and band project, Composers Collective, featuring an all-star ensemble that includes keyboardist Mike King, bassist Junius Paul, vibraphonist Joel Ross, and drummer Makaya McCraven.

Marquis Hill

SFJAZZ Center

For her final two nights of residency, Younger honors the life and music of the late harpist and jazz legend Alice Coltrane with her working trio, strings, and special guests. An artist chosen by Coltrane’s son Ravi to perform at a series of concerts in her honor as well as her memorial in 2007, Younger carries on the adventurous spirit of her greatest influence, infusing her compositions with a 21st century vibrancy and fearless experimentation.



Brandee Younger: Alice Coltrane Tribute

Younger begins her week with two nights devoted to her 2023 Impulse! album Brand New Life, a shimmering collection of works written by or performed by the late jazz harp pioneer Dorothy Ashby, along with original compositions dedicated to Ashby’s enduring legacy. Building bridges that span jazz, classical music, and hip-hop, Younger is joined for these dates by her working trio of bassist Rashaan Carter and drumming phenom Makaya McCraven, along with a string section and special guests.



Brandee Younger: Brand New Life

His newest album, In These Times, is the triumphant finale of a project more than seven years in the making. It’s a preeminent addition to his acclaimed and extensive discography, and it’s the album he’s been trying to make since he started recording. In These Times is a collection of polytemporal compositions inspired as much by broader cultural struggles as it is by McCraven’s personal experience as a product of a multinational, working-class musician community.

Makaya McCraven: In These Times

The Music Center at Strathmore

Drummer and Chicagoan Makaya McCraven, aptly referred to as a “cultural synthesizer,” has a unique gift for blending past, present and future into poly-textural arrangements of post-genre, jazz-rooted, 21st century folk music. For one illuminating evening, he is joined by Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Meshell Ndegeocello.

Makaya McCraven with special guest Meshell Ndegeocello

Symphony Center

Makaya McCraven has "quietly become one of the best arguments for jazz’s vitality" (The New York Times). The Paris-born, Massachusetts-raised, Chicago-based drummer, composer, and producer is a multi-talented "cultural synthesizer" whose inventive process and intuitive, cinematic sound defies categorization. Composed and produced over the past 7 years, Makaya presents his latest project, In These Times, his most ambitious and personal album to date that topped Billboard Charts and made "Best Of" lists for NPR, LA Times, and The New York Times.

Makaya McCraven: In These Times with the Urban Art Orchestra Endea Owens & The Cookout

Orchestra Hall

Makaya McCraven is a beat scientist. The bleeding edge drummer, producer, and sonic collagist is one of Chicago’s savviest cultural players and a multi-talented force whose inventive process & intuitive, cinematic style defy categorization.  French-born but raised in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts by expatriate musician parents, McCraven studied Jazz at the University of Massachusetts Amherst under the mentorship of jazz luminaries Archie Shepp, Marion Brown, and Yusef Lateef, and eventually went on to develop his chops in Chicago’s burgeoning scene.  His breakthrough album In the Moment was released with International Anthem Recording Co. (IARC) in 2015 and received widespread acclaim, proving to be a dramatic statement by McCraven that quickly launched him into the vanguard of not only Internationally-known jazz artists, but also a niche genre of next-wave composer-producers blurring the boundaries of jazz & electronic music.  His recent releases, the DJ-style mixtape Highly Rare (IARC, 2017) as well as an internationally recorded Where We Come From (CHICAGOxLONDON Mixtape) (IARC, 2018) have been well received globally, leading to increased bookings in some of the world’s best clubs, theaters, and festivals alongside the likes of Corey Wilkes, Bobby (Baabe) Irving (Miles Davis), Ari Brown, and Bernie Worrell.  McCraven is currently on tour and most recently released Universal Beings, a 2xLP album featuring an A-list of “new” jazz players from New York, Chicago, London & Los Angeles.

Drummer

Makaya McCraven

Events

Past events

Oct 10, 2025

Makaya McCraven · University Musical Society

Oct 19, 2024

Makaya McCraven & SHABAKA · McCarter Theatre Center

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