Onaje Allan Gumbs Nominated for NAACP Image Award

Pianist Onaje Allan Gumbs has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award in the Outstanding Jazz Artist category. Fellow nominees were saxophonists Najee and Mike Phillips, pianist Jermaine Gardner, and vocalist Billy Miles.

Harlem-born, Queens-raised, Onaje has enjoyed a career as first-call sideman, valued arranger and composer, producer, and most importantly, bandleader and recording artist. Many will remember him for his vital contributions to such Woody Shaw classics as Moontrane and Rosewood, to which he lent his exceptional composing and arranging skills. Still others will recall his work as producer/arranger for vocal dates led by Downing, Rubin, and Marlena Shaw; or perhaps his sideman contributions to dates with an impressive range of artists - from NEA Jazz Master Kenny Burrell and Nat Adderley, to the cutting edge with Ronald Shannon Jackson, to the crossover dreams of Jonathan Butler. Onaje's soundtrack writing includes Danny Glover's Showtime film Override , and his song Dare to Dream was a theme for a Panasonic awards presentation.

Most recently, Onaje celebrated the completion of his album Remember Their Innocence, a recording that aptly mirrors the extraordinarily broad-based pallet of experiences he has enjoyed and enhanced with his presence. To date, the album has received high praise amongst critics and fans; Jerry D'Souza, from All About Jazz, writes “Onaje Allan Gumbs took his wide experiences as a musician into the studio for his latest recording and came up with a winning combination in Remember Their Innocence."

Founded in 1909, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is the nation's oldest ad largest civil rights organization. Its half-million adult and youth members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities and monitor equal opportunity in the public and private sectors. For more information about the awards, or to vote for the nominees, visit www.naacpimageawards.net.

For more information about Onaje Allan Gumbs, and about Remember Their Innocence, visit his website at www.onajeallangumbs.com.