JUNE/JULY 2026 | 15 continued on page 16 By Ken Capobianco Saxophonist-flutist Najee released his 1986 debut album, Najee’s eme, to much fanfare and accolades. e album arrived a er Najee had built a steady career as a studio and touring musician, and it set the template for the New York native’s soulful, melodic, R&B-based jazz. Fast forward to 2026, and Najee is celebrating the 40th anniversary of his debut as an international jazz star—a widely recognizable, onenamed musician who has collaborated with a who’s who of jazz and pop icons ranging from Stevie Wonder to Prince, Herbie Hancock and Roy Ayers. The saxophonist with the pure tone and sophisticated compositional skills has had the unique ability to mix jazz complexity with mainstream song savvy. His four-decade success has been a hard-earned triumph of musical excellence. “It’s been a great ride,” said the good-natured musician via phone recently. “When I started this solo thing, really as an experiment, I was a sideman and recording musician in New York City—and I toured and played with many prominent musicians up to that point. But when I put out my rst record, I saw the market as R&B, where the saxophone could be the lead instrument. “Now that wasn’t necessarily unique at the time in the late ’80s, but there was barely any instrumental music being heard at the time. I was touring with Freddie Jackson, which was a huge R&B audience, and what can I say? I got lucky, and look, here we are.” Najee, born Jerome Najee Rasheed, is obviously being modest when crediting luck for his success. He is one of the most accomplished, highly trained musicians in jazz, with a keen sense of melody and performance chops honed from years of touring and working with some of the greatest showmen. Last August, he released his 18th studio album, Under the Moon Over the Sky, a vivid reminder of the depth and dimensionality of his music. It’s a sensual, eclectic set of songs that leans heavily toward international flavors and melodic flair. He collaborates with vocalists Regina Belle and Will Downing, as well as keyboardist Brian Simpson and Brazilian musicians Marcello Ferreira and Bossa Nova Noites. “I decided to do an independent record for the rst time in my career, and call up my friends,” Najee said. “ e title of the album is a title from a song that was written by Angela Bo ll in the ’80s. “She was a great vocalist, and, as you know, she passed away a couple of years back, and we decided to do something in her honor because she was underutilized and underappreciated,” Najee said about the sweet-singing jazz-R&B artist who died in 2024. “Before I started recording the new album in the U.S., I was in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, and working with a group called Bossa Nova Noites, and we recorded a project featuring a few Brazilian artists from the local area. So, I ended up taking two songs from that record, and that became the basis of what I built around. It evolved into a broad thing.” e 68-year-old musician, who has toured the world since he was in high school in Queens, New York, said he draws inspiration from the cities and cultures he travels to, as well as the musicians he plays with. “You can take your experiences with other musicians or cultures and incorporate that into your musical personality, and they will hopefully make sense and sound good. I try not to do things that I feel unnatural doing, though,” he added. “When you work with other artists, you absorb things. I toured with Prince for three years, and there was so much I learned by recording and touring with him. It was an amazing experience, and I got better from it.” Najee’s music is deeply indebted to his New York roots. He grew up and went to school in Manhattan and Queens. ere’s a soulfulness, rhythmic intensity and beautiful noise to his sound that directly mirrors the wonders of Manhattan culture. “You grow up in New York, and you are around a lot of music, so you adapt to the environment,” he explained. “As a kid, I was exposed to a lot of di erent cultural experiences, musically speaking. In the summertime, I’d go out to a show in Central Park, and you got the Latin brothers there from Cuba, or Puerto Rico, or wherever, jamming, and you could get up there with your saxophone and play and watch people dance.” He spoke with enthusiasm while recalling the vibrant times of his youth in the cultural capital of the country. “You had R&B bands, which I came up in, and then there was Jazzmobile (a music program for aspiring musicians), where I was studying on the weekends as a teenager with Jimmy Heath. “ en I would do classical lessons with Harold Jones of the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra, so I was living all that and just absorbing it all. It served me well because I’ve been in a lot of musical situations, and when called upon, I think I’ve risen to the occasion.” As a music veteran, Najee now has the opportunity to share what he has learned with other musicians and young people. He fondly recalled his own mentors who helped shape who he is today as a musician and a person. “My high school teacher, Mr. David Vetter, who was an accomplished saxophone player, was instrumental in giving me advice Najee is one of the most accomplished, highly trained musicians in jazz, with a keen sense of melody and performance chops.
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