KJ Denhert

Guitarist-singer-songwriter KJ Denhert channels passion through intelligent lyrics, soulful vocals and impeccable musicianship, with music that transcends genres and generations. Her self-penned moniker as an “urban folk and jazz artist” only begins to sum up the many influences heard in her performances and compositions. She is, irrepressible, exuberant, prolific, versatile and driven. KJ and her band The New York Unit have headlined festivals in the US and overseas including the prestigious Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy, where she has been invited back for 8 consecutive seasons, as well as appearances at the San Jose and Cape Cod Jazz Festivals, the Blue Note in New York, and a long term residency at the legendary 55 Bar in NYC. KJ’s career has been steadily on the rise since being released internationally by the New York City-based jazz/world Motéma Music in 199, and her two ‘urban, folk & jazz’ releases on Motema: Lucky 7 and Dal Vivo A Umbria Jazz (Recorded Live at Umbria Jazz Festival ) have each met with international and critical acclaim.

The music KJ writes, produces and arranges is always evolving. She’s also known for creating stunning new arrangements of unusual covers. “I like to get inside people’s heads with songs that everyone knows but that no one would ever expect in a jazz setting. I unveiled my rendition of “Smoke on the Water” last summer and the place went wild. Everyone was smiling and asking for the recording. I have to hurry up and record that too!” Currently, KJ is working on a new recording project featuring singular renditions of jazz and pop classics.

A self-taught instrumentalist, KJ was raised in the Bronx as a Grenadian-American with mixed West Indian roots, and her love of music first became evident at 10 years old, when she composed a heartfelt tribute on a four-string guitar. An expert wordsmith, whose lyrics tell deeply personal stories that communicate universal truths, KJ began to seriously hit her stride as an independent songwriter, recording artist and producer in 2004 with the release of Girl Like Me, and with the song “Little Mary” which won first place at The Mountain Stage New Song Contest. “It was a breakthrough album for me artistically, which inspired me to leave my day job and focus on my music one more time”.

Her follow up CD, The Songwriters Notebook, opens with a soulful version of Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “Agua de Beber” arranged for two voices and two guitars, also included a KJ original, “Private Angel” which won Kerrville New Folk Song honors that year and earned her 2nd Independent Music Award nomination. In 2006, she took home an Independent Music Award for “Best Live Performance CD”, which honored her 5th CD Another Year Gone By, Live.

“They call me Lucky 7…lucky thing is I never give up…” These lyrics are pulled from the title track of her 7th CD, Lucky 7 (Motéma 2007). They speak an essential truth that is part of KJ’s lifelong outlook, imbued with a sense of hard-earned and cherished good fortune. This album released in relationship with Motéma Music, a respected independent jazz/world label based in Harlem, received critical acclaim further expanding KJ’s fame.

KJ has a phenomenal gift for live performance that has earned her a loyal, worldwide fan base, and her live concert performances are always a joy. Nowhere is this more evident than on KJ’s 2008 Motéma release, Dal Vivo A Umbria Jazz recorded live at Umbria’s Winter Festival in Orvieto, Italy. And her long-standing band, the NY Unit, with special guest saxophonist Aaron Heik, shines as a super-tight groove ensemble that perfectly compliments and wonderfully highlights KJ’s unique and extraordinary style.