The latest trumpet sensation Theo Croker could almost be called jazz nobility. His grandfather was jazz musician Doc Cheatham, who worked with Cab Calloway, Teddy Wilson and Billie Holiday. And Croker himself was taught by trumpet legend Donald Byrd. Nevertheless, it took some time before Crocker consciously decided to focus on jazz, since he had started his musical career as an accompanist in pop and funk bands. His first solo records are praiseworthy explorations of jazz traditions, but in 2014 Crocker found his true voice with Afro Physicist. And what a voice: lyrical and tight but also raw and elegant. On that album he worked with DeeDee Bridgewater and Roy Hargrove. During the pandemic, Croker returned to his place of birth in Florida to write his sixth album, a project about his metaphorical journey as a young black musician. The result is the much-lauded BLK2LIFE || A FUTURE PAST.
