LAKECIA BENJAMIN
Lakecia Benjamin
Lakecia Benjamin is a 6x Grammy-nominated alto saxophonist, arranger, composer, MC, and bandleader based in New York City, where she was born and raised in Washington Heights, Manhattan. She trained at the LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts and New School University under Billy Harper and Gary Bartz, and went on to perform and record alongside Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys, The Roots, Macy Gray, Prince, Kool & The Gang, Robert Glasper, and Terri Lyne Carrington. Benjamin has led the Soul Squad, her ensembles blending jazz with funk, R&B, salsa, and hip-hop in a style as rooted in the streets of Washington Heights as in the jazz tradition. Her 2023 album Phoenix — produced by Terri Lyne Carrington and released on Whirlwind Recordings — earned three Grammy nominations and was named one of the year's best albums by major music press. Her 2026 album We Dream further expands her palette with elements of hip-hop, R&B, and global rhythms. Benjamin is also an educator and activist, voted Alto Saxophonist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association and praised as one of the most electrifying live performers in contemporary jazz.
Bio
Lakecia Benjamin is a 6x Grammy-nominated alto saxophonist, arranger, composer, MC, and bandleader based in New York City, where she was born and raised in Washington Heights, Manhattan. She trained at the LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts and New School University under Billy Harper and Gary Bartz, and went on to perform and record alongside Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys, The Roots, Macy Gray, Prince, Kool & The Gang, Robert Glasper, and Terri Lyne Carrington. Benjamin has led the Soul Squad, her ensembles blending jazz with funk, R&B, salsa, and hip-hop in a style as rooted in the streets of Washington Heights as in the jazz tradition. Her 2023 album Phoenix — produced by Terri Lyne Carrington and released on Whirlwind Recordings — earned three Grammy nominations and was named one of the year's best albums by major music press. Her 2026 album We Dream further expands her palette with elements of hip-hop, R&B, and global rhythms. Benjamin is also an educator and activist, voted Alto Saxophonist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association and praised as one of the most electrifying live performers in contemporary jazz.
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