James Brandon Lewis

James Brandon Lewis was born on August 13, 1983, in Buffalo, New York. His father was a pastor and his mother an educator, so Lewis grew up immersed in church music. He studied clarinet with Buffalo educators Carol McLaughlin and Dave Schiavone before switching to saxophone. Lewis attended the Buffalo Academy for the Visual and Performing Arts, graduating in 2001. He then earned his undergraduate degree from Howard University in 2006, where he studied with Geri Allen, Benny Golson, Bill Pierce, and Wallace Roney.

After graduation, Lewis relocated to Colorado and performed with gospel musicians including Albertina Walker. In 2008, he pursued graduate studies at the California Institute of the Arts under Charlie Haden and Wadada Leo Smith, completing his MFA in 2010. His debut album Moments appeared in 2010 and established a distinctive voice that rejected stylistic hierarchies. Lewis then recorded Divine Travels in 2014 and Days of Freeman in 2015 for OKeh Records, the latter featuring spiritual spoken-word passages and grooves with electric bassist Jamaladeen Tacuma and drummer Rudy Royston. These recordings demonstrated his synthesis of gospel spirituality, avant-garde experimentation, and blues-inflected approaches.

Lewis collaborated with drummer Chad Taylor on Radiant Imprints in 2018 and An UnRuly Manifesto in 2019, establishing himself as a leading figure in contemporary free jazz. In 2021, he formed the Red Lily Quintet and recorded Jesup Wagon, inspired by George Washington Carver’s agricultural work. The album received Album of the Year honors from DownBeat and Jazz Times magazines. His musical approach synthesizes rhythmic vitality, modal sophistication derived from John Coltrane and Albert Ayler, and spiritual depth rooted in his church upbringing. Saxophonist Sonny Rollins praised Lewis’s work, recognizing his contribution to contemporary jazz.

Lewis released Eye of I in 2023 on Anti-Records, For Mahalia, With Love in 2023 with the Red Lily Quintet, and Transfiguration in 2024. DownBeat’s 2024 Critics Poll named him Artist of the Year. He continues to tour internationally and remains based in New York.