ABOUT THE ALBUM
Featuring the Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsalis alongside social justice activist and founder of The Equal Justice Initiative Bryan Stevenson, Freedom, Justice, and Hope is a stirring experience that explores Black Americans’ pursuit of equality through music and spoken word. Originally performed in front of an empty house and then webcast globally during the Covid pandemic, this special event is now an album, just in time for Juneteenth 2024.
Freedom, Justice, and Hope pairs Stevenson’s moving monologues on race in America with classics like John Coltrane’s “Alabama” and “We Shall Overcome” performed by the world-renowned JLCO. Stevenson also contributes his considerable piano chops to two tracks, joining special guests Endea Owens (bass) and Josh Evans (trumpet) who also each wrote monumental new compositions for the occasion. Freedom, Justice, and Hope illuminates how Black jazz artists have been inspired by—and have, in turn, inspired—the struggle for freedom for decades, and it adds an important chapter to the music’s growing legacy of activism.
Personnel
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
Sherman Irby – alto and soprano saxophone
Ted Nash – alto and soprano saxophone, flute
Victor Goines – tenor saxophone, clarinet
Walter Blanding – tenor saxophone, clarinet
Paul Nedzela – baritone saxophone
Ryan Kisor – trumpet
Kenny Rampton – trumpet
Marcus Printup – trumpet
Wynton Marsalis – trumpet
Vincent Gardner – trombone
Chris Crenshaw – trombone
Elliot Mason – trombone
Dan Nimmer – piano
Carlos Henriquez – bass
Obed Calvaire – drums
With Special Guests
Josh Evans – trumpet (track 3)
Endea Owens – bass (track 5)
Bryan Stevenson – narration, piano (tracks 2 & 6)