Otis Brown III

musician, The Gettin’; If We Were a Love Song

Otis Brown III (musician, The Gettin’; If We Were a Love Song) is a Grammy-nominated drummer committed to honoring tradition while pushing the boundaries of genre. Having grown up in Newark, New Jersey, to the sounds of jazz, gospel, funk, and rhythm and blues, Brown believes music is a vessel for spiritual catharsis, storytelling, and advocacy. Over the course of his stellar career as a first-call musician, he has recorded and toured with the likes of Herbie Hancock, Joe Lovano, Esperanza Spalding, Terence Blanchard, Robert Glasper, Somi, Gretchen Parlato, Kurt Elling, and many others. Having played with a literal “Who’s Who” in the music world, Brown has also been a frequent collaborator in the world of modern dance. His most recent collaboration was with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for a new work titled Finding Free by choreographer Hope Boykin. Brown has previously worked with Kyle Abraham and A.I.M. on the company’s works The Gettin’ (with Robert Glasper) and Absent Matter, where he was co-composer of the music along with Oscar Award-winning composer Kris Bowers. Brown is also a bandleader in his own right. He released his critically acclaimed debut album The Thought Of You on the Blue Note/Revive Music record label and its highly anticipated follow-up will be released later this year.