Founded by Igmar Thomas, the former Music Director and bandleader for Ms. Lauryn Hill and Nas, The Revive Big Band is not just a band, it’s a movement. Rooted in Black American music and combining jazz, hip hop, funk, soul, blues, and gospel, this multi-generational ensemble is made up of some of the most accomplished musicians alive today.

Collectively, the band’s members have 27 Grammy^® nominations and 13 Grammy^® wins; have been praised in nearly every major media outlet including the New York Times, NPR, Okayplayer, Downbeat, Billboard, and others; and have performed all over the world collaborating with some of the most well-known artists out there today: Common, J. Cole, D’Angelo, Quincy Jones, Herbie Hancock, Sting, Esperanza Spalding, Dizzy Gillespie, Talib Kweli, Gregory Porter, Bilal, Robert Glasper, and Pharoahe Monch.

Since making its debut in 2010, the Big Band has performed at the Kennedy Center, Central Park SummerStage, Harlem Stage, BRIC, the Apollo Theater, Highline Ballroom, Blue Note Jazz Club, Winter JazzFest, Art of Cool Festival, and Ginny’s Supper Club. With a repertoire that features original compositions and inventive orchestrations of jazz standards and contemporary classics by artists ranging from Oliver Nelson, Wayne Shorter, and Freddie Hubbard to A Tribe Called Quest, J Dilla, Gang Starr, and Bilal, the Revive Big Band returns to the Kennedy Center for another exciting presentation.