{"id":3181,"date":"2026-04-08T17:31:41","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T21:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/?p=3181"},"modified":"2026-04-08T17:31:43","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T21:31:43","slug":"celebrating-the-heroes-behind-the-jazz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2026\/04\/celebrating-the-heroes-behind-the-jazz.html","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating the Heroes behind the Jazz"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>As jazz &#8212; the music, business and culture of it &#8212; depends on an intricate and widespread network of activists, altruists and advocates to thrive, and celebrating local doers at least used to be a way to focus attention on the out-of-the-spotlight work necessary to make anything worthwhile happen, the Jazz Journalists Association (JJA) is for the 25th year naming and profiling<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-heroes\">\u00a0Jazz Heroes<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a class=\"image-link image2 is-viewable-img can-restack\" href=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!PyzR!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d15b2e-3100-447b-b92a-823a9f5a6353_1920x1080.jpeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/substackcdn.com\/image\/fetch\/$s_!PyzR!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep\/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F40d15b2e-3100-447b-b92a-823a9f5a6353_1920x1080.jpeg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ve formally retired from presiding over the<a href=\"http:\/\/members.jazzjournalists.org\/\">&nbsp;JJA<\/a>, but am deeply involved in promoting this campaign, hoping to remind people all over \u2014 general audiences! \u2014 that jazz is near them\/us, presented by our neighbors, taught and sung and lived by devotees virtually everywhere. The JJA\u2019s 34&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-heroes\">2026 Jazz Heroes<\/a>. are grassroots culture workers from 32 locales (including, for the first time, London). Their portraits and personality profiles are at&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/\">JJAJazzAwards.org\/2026-jazz-heroes<\/a>. Among them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-henry-franklin\">Henry \u201cThe Skipper\u201d Franklin (Los Angeles), legacy artist, bassist, mentor and music community anchor<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-bill-martinez\">Bill Martinez (San Francisco, CA), an immigration attorney who has facilitated dozens of performances by Cuban artists in the U.S.<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-fiona-ross\">Fiona Ross<\/a>\u00a0(London, UK), pianist, vocalist, songwriter and founder of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/womeninjazzmedia.com\/about\">Women in Jazz Media<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-lauren-parks\">Lauren Parks<\/a>\u00a0(East St. Louis, IL), leader of campaign to turn Miles Davis\u2019s childhood home into the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/houseofmilesestl.com\/\">House of Miles<\/a>\u00a0community center<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-kevin-struthers\">Kevin Struthers<\/a>, under whose direction jazz programming of the now-shuttered Kennedy Center was a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kennedy-center.org\/whats-on\/explore-by-genre\/jazz\/?gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=299478384&amp;gbraid=0AAAABBMbcUj5UZLOOBE5LhTOTjrsD7g33&amp;gclid=CjwKCAjw-dfOBhAjEiwAq0RwIwwvbYHNorRl9a6gyP9OQjjVnTIwzSJ-_fVcDAT5_UgGxHT_UwUbrRoCfi0QAvD_BwE\">national asset<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The complete class includes community-committed and issue-oriented music-makers of Akron, Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Billings, Chicago, Houston, Indianapolis, Sacramento and Washington, D.C.; educators at academy, conservatory, studio and university levels in Ann Arbor, Northampton, San Juan and the Twin Cities; radio voices of Columbus, Detroit, Houston, Rochester, South Bend and West Hartford; Toledo\u2019s jam-session organizer and Sacramento\u2019s&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.twinlotusthai.com\/\">Thai restaurant venue<\/a>-operator; the founder of New York City\u2019s kid-centric<a href=\"https:\/\/jazzpower.org\/\">&nbsp;Jazz Power Initiative<\/a>&nbsp;and the publisher of&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.allaboutjazz.com\/\">AllAboutJazz.com<\/a>, a free portal in its 30th year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jazz Heroes are nominated by supporters in their local communities, and receive JJA certificates in events attended by those fans. Houston deejay&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-tierney-malone\/\">Tierney Malone,<\/a>&nbsp;for instance, will accept his Jazz Award at a \u201cColtrane 100\u201d concert at DACAMERA on April 10; longtime WGMC jazz anchor&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-derrick-lucas\/\">Derrick Lucas<\/a>&nbsp;gets his certificate at a free April 14 Rick Holland Big Band \u201cJazz at The Beach\u201d performance at Tropix Nightclub; and South Side griot&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jjajazzawards.org\/2026-jazz-hero-maggie-brown\">Maggie Brown<\/a>&nbsp;is to be feted at a JJA Party at Chicago\u2019s Palmer House on April 29. Others TBA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jazz musicians, by definition, are jazz soldiers \u2014 but not all are Jazz Heroes, who go beyond their basic survival responsibilities to sustain and expand on musical activities above and beyond. A Honor Roll of all the Jazz Heroes from 2001 (then called members of \u201cthe A Team\u201d) to 2025 is&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/document\/d\/1YLsLDSv0p7sHv_tRkQok5JLwHeBDC8xGYrgSEHvXi0Q\/edit?tab=t.0\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/members.jazzjournalists.org\/join\">The JJA is a 501 (c) 3<\/a>&nbsp;professional organization first convened in 1987, currently with more than 260 members worldwide. The 2026 Jazz Heroes campaign is concurrent with the 31<sup>st<\/sup>&nbsp;Annual JJA Jazz Awards, winners to be announced May 5. The JJA also produces&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thebuzzthejjapodcast.buzzsprout.com\/\">The Buzz<\/a>&nbsp;podcast and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLFDQYnL2nTzS4EPE859-Qo7Tfd9Q1PXfC\">Seeing Jazz&nbsp;<\/a>photography master classes. In 2024, Cymbal Press published&nbsp;<em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Jazz-Omnibus-21st-Century-Journalists-Association\/dp\/1955604185\">The Jazz Omnibus: 21st Century Photos and Writings by Members of the Jazz Journalists Association<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/em>The JJA maintains frequently updated&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jazzpromoservices.us2.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=3186fe64133adb244b1010be2&amp;id=0c595c8d18&amp;e=62fbfe04a4\">JJANews<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/jazzpromoservices.us2.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=3186fe64133adb244b1010be2&amp;id=65d7da8b3a&amp;e=62fbfe04a4\">JJAJazzAwards<\/a>; @JazzJournalists on Facebook, JJAnews on X, JazzJournalists on Instagram, and can be reached with emails to admin@jazzjournalists.org.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One more thing: It\u2019s not necessary to be a Jazz Hero to enjoy (or even just sample) jazz. There\u2019s a lot of it out there, all varieties, maybe you hear and it and don\u2019t even notice. But beware, exposure breeds appreciation, enjoyment, embrace, enthrallment, devotion. It\u2019s a slippery slope, starting with syncopation, swing and blue notes, leading who knows where? Not knowing\u2019s a part of the fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As jazz &#8212; the music, business and culture of it &#8212; depends on an intricate and widespread network of activists, altruists and advocates to thrive, and celebrating local doers at least used to be a way to focus attention on the out-of-the-spotlight work necessary to make anything worthwhile happen, the Jazz Journalists Association (JJA) is [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3182,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1709,194,2087],"class_list":{"0":"post-3181","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-main","8":"tag-jazz-heroes","9":"tag-jazz-journalists-association","10":"tag-jja-jazz-heroes","11":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2026-JJA-Jazz-Heroes-collage.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1i3CL-Pj","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":397,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2011\/05\/celebrating_jazz_excellence_.html","url_meta":{"origin":3181,"position":0},"title":"Celebrating jazz excellence &#8212; Awards, honors and privileges","author":"Howard Mandel","date":"May 23, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"The NEA zeroes out its Jazz Masters program, the Grammys cuts categories so pop best-sellers regain prominence vis a vis less obviously commercial stars, but the Jazz Journalists Association's 15th annual Jazz Awards -- to be held June 11, 2011 with an afternoon gala with all star music at City\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;main&quot;","block_context":{"text":"main","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/category\/main"},"img":{"alt_text":"maria schneider &.jpeg","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/maria%20schneider%20%26.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3140,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2025\/04\/across-north-america-29-jazz-heroes.html","url_meta":{"origin":3181,"position":1},"title":"Across North America, 29 &#8220;Jazz Heroes&#8221;","author":"Howard Mandel","date":"April 2, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Twenty-five years ago the Jazz Journalists Association began to identify and celebrate activists, advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz as members of an \u201cA Team,\u201d soon renamed \u201cJazz Heroes.\u201d Today the JJA announced its 2025 slate of these Heroes, 29 people across North America who put extraordinary efforts into\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;main&quot;","block_context":{"text":"main","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/category\/main"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Jazz-Heroes-rectangle-collage.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3074,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2023\/04\/36-jazz-heroes-in-32-us-cities-and-there-are-many-more.html","url_meta":{"origin":3181,"position":2},"title":"36 Jazz Heroes in 32 US cities &#8211; and there are many more","author":"Howard Mandel","date":"April 6, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The Jazz Journalists Association announces the 2023 Jazz Heroes -- \"activists, advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz,\" formerly the A Team -- emphasizing as it has annually since 2001 that jazz is culture that comes from the ground up, by individuals crossing all demographic categories, working frequently with others\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;main&quot;","block_context":{"text":"main","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/category\/main"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3097,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2024\/04\/its-jazz-appreciation-month-hail-jazz-heroes.html","url_meta":{"origin":3181,"position":3},"title":"It&#8217;s Jazz Appreciation Month: Hail Jazz Heroes!","author":"Howard Mandel","date":"April 16, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Since 2001, the Jazz Journalists Association (over which I preside) has celebrated some 350 \u201cactivists, advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz,\u201d as Jazz Heroes. The class of 2024 Jazz Heroes has just been announced, recognizing the good works of 33 people whose efforts extend from the Baja-San Diego borderland\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;main&quot;","block_context":{"text":"main","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/category\/main"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/2023-heroes-collage-1-scaled.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1341,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2013\/04\/jazz-day-reasons-to-be-cheerful.html","url_meta":{"origin":3181,"position":4},"title":"Jazz Day reasons to be cheerful","author":"Howard Mandel","date":"April 30, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"On the second International Jazz Day, let's celebrate -- 1) A glorious legacy of enduring music; 2) The\u00c2\u00a0dedication to the art form of musicians and their supporters now, worldwide; 3) The recognition by government officials and institutions of jazz as an entity that will not be silenced or co-opted; 4)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;main&quot;","block_context":{"text":"main","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/category\/main"},"img":{"alt_text":"Jazz Heroes, designated in 2013 by the Jazz Journalists Association and 25 local North American communities","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/2013JazzHeroeswHEADwnumbers.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1344,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/2013\/05\/the-localization-of-international-jazz-day.html","url_meta":{"origin":3181,"position":5},"title":"The localization of International Jazz Day","author":"Howard Mandel","date":"May 1, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm just thrilled UNESCO partnered with the Monk Institute to produce the second International Jazz Day, April 30 -- the culmination of Jazz Appreciation Month (so designated by the Smithsonian Institute) and what the Jazz Journalists Assoc., over which I preside, called JazzApril. The rest of this post might be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;main&quot;","block_context":{"text":"main","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/category\/main"},"img":{"alt_text":"brink","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/brink.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3181"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3181\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3181"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/jazzbeyondjazz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}