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Kassa Overall

Kassa Overall, drummer, producer and recording artist, is a rising star on today’s music scene. Encompassing all styles and traditions of music, he works with artists ranging from jazz to hip-hop, indie-pop to avante-garde. As a drummer, Overall has been an integral part of Geri Allen’s Timeline band which has toured extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe for the past three years. You can hear their latest work on Geri allen’s latest release entitled “Timeline Live.” Being an extremely versatile drummer that can shine in any situation, he has also been making an impact on the indie-pop scene touring with artists such as Francis and The Lights, Gordon Voidwell, TECLA and Mayer Hawthorne.

Utilizing the capabilities of laptops and samplers on stage is a key element to Overall’s signature sound. He has also toured extensively with his own band, fusing his jazz and instrumental training with his contemporary electronic passion. Overall received his Bachelor’s of Music from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music where he studied under jazz drum legend Billy Hart. His mentors have also included the late Elvin Jones, Billy Higgins and Tutti Heath. Overall has also performed or recorded with Vijay Iyer, Das Racist, Francis and The Lights, Mayer Hawthorne and The County, Wallace Roney, Ravi Coltrane, Geri Allen, Billy Hart, Gary Bartz, Iron Solomon, Gordon Voidwell, TECLA and many more. Not only is he a versatile drummer and artist, but he is performing with some of the most respected and sought after artists of every genre he is involved in.

He is currently focused on his own projects as a producer, rapper and singer. His credits as a producer and rapper can be found on Das Racist’s (Sit Down, Man) (Shut Up, Dude), TECLA’s (Strangers in Masks), and Iron Solomon’s (Monster) project’s. With a passion for growth, development and persistence, Kassa Overall is definitely one to watch as the music evolves. Also be on the lookout for Kassa’s debut self-produced project entitled “Coffee and Cigarettes”, his collaboration album with KOOL AD of Das Racist, and for the fans who are waitnig patiently comes The Stargate Mixtape. A raw overnight mixtape made of entirely Stargate Production.

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Radio & Podcasts

Ernie Andrews, Elvin Jones & Kassa Overall

Read "Ernie Andrews, Elvin Jones & Kassa Overall" reviewed by Joe Dimino


We start the 742nd Episode of Neon Jazz with a new force in jazz by the name of Kassa Overall with music from his album Go Get Ice Cream and Listen to Jazz. From there, we hear from his mentor in Elvin Jones. The remaining hour is a cascade of quality new jazz from the likes of Marta Sanchez, Antonio Adolfo and Samara Joy. Finally, we say good-bye to late singer Ernie Andrews. Dig this new hour of music, my ...

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Album Review

Dan Waldman: Sources & Angles

Read "Sources & Angles" reviewed by Geno Thackara


After a couple decades as a busy working player, a fellow certainly should have plenty of angles to play, not to mention myriad sources to draw on in a milieu as exciting as the jazz-fusion tradition. This would explain why Dan Waldman's debut doesn't sound like a debut. He knows his stuff; he couldn't have lasted so long in his adopted home of jny: New York City otherwise. His quartet is likewise as solid as a leader could wish for, ...

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Catching Up With

Kassa Overall: I Think I'm Good

Read "Kassa Overall: I Think I'm Good" reviewed by Serena Antinucci


We might never know what exactly happens in the creative mind of Brooklyn-based producer and drummer Kassa Overall. However, his latest album, I Think I'm Good (Brownswood Recordings), gives us an insight in his swirling imagination. The sophomore release by one of the brightest musicians of the New York jazz scene, I Think I'm Good reaches even deeper than his debut album Go Get Ice Cream and Listen to Jazz (2019). Overall breaks down barriers among genres, ...

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Interview

Kassa Overall racconta il suo secondo album

Read "Kassa Overall racconta il suo secondo album" reviewed by Serena Antinucci


Quello che succede nella mente creativa del trentaseienne producer e batterista jazz Kassa Overall non lo sapremo mai. Siamo sicuri? In realtà, nel suo ultimo disco I Think I'm Good, uscito per la Brownswood Recordings a gennaio 2020, ci concede un giro nella sua immaginazione vorticosa. Il secondo album di uno dei migliori musicisti della scena jazz newyorchese, di base a Brooklyn, esprime qualcosa di ancor più personale e profondo rispetto al suo debutto Go Get Ice Cream ...

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Radio & Podcasts

Kassa Overall: Living in the Cut between Jazz and Hip Hop

Read "Kassa Overall: Living in the Cut between Jazz and Hip Hop" reviewed by Leo Sidran


Drummer, rapper and producer Kassa Overall speaks about the intersection of jazz and hip-hop, the importance of getting “comfortable with being bored so you can get better at your instrument," the relationship between great drumming and the sounds of nature, how growing up far away from the “scene" gave him a strong sense of personal identity, and what it takes to be a “cat who is going for it." Along the way, he discusses the influence of many ...

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