KJazz 88.1 | Dan Seeff

Dan Seeff

Updated: 4/27/2021 09:44

Dan Seeff
ExcursionsRadio

Dan Seeff is the West Coast Director of the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz and a versatile electric and upright bassist, guitarist, writer and producer who performs and records in a wide variety of genres including hip-hop, jazz, R&B, rock and reggae. He has toured internationally and appeared on Grammy-winning and multi- platinum albums.

Seeff grew up just outside of Washington, DC where he learned to play guitar, saxophone, and piano. He began working for the Monk Institute in 1995 in Washington, DC as a co-producer of the International Jazz Competition. He moved to Los Angeles in 1996 to work with the Institute’s educational outreach programs and the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance at UCLA, a two-year scholarship masters program where one band of high-level musicians is selected by Institute Chairman Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Kenny Burrell among others to study with legendary jazz artists. He also developed the Institute’s BeBop to Hip-Hop program, where high school students study music and music production with jazz artists and hip-hop producers.

In 1997, Seeff began working with three-time Grammy-winning producer DJ Khalil and touring with world-music group Wozani. Since that time, Seeff has played bass, guitar and co-written songs on dozens of hip-hop and r&b albums through his work with DJ Khalil including the chart-topping Lift Your Spirit by Aloe Blacc, the Grammy-winning Recovery by Enimem, and the Grammy-nominated albums Malibu by Anderson.Paak and Let Love Rule by Ledisi. His work has appeared on albums by artists including A$AP Rocky, Joey Badass, Logic, Big Krit, Kendrick Lamar, Jay Z and many others. He has also worked with numerous hip-hop producers including DJ Muggs, Hi-Tek and Rahki and has toured nationally and internationally with soul group the Rebirth, Sal Santana and indie rock band My Hawaii. Seeff has also studied upright bass with renowned bassist Ron Carter since 2004.

As a music fan, Seeff has eclectic tastes ranging from jazz to hip-hop to progressive rock to reggae. He is an avid student of music as both a musician and a listener.

ExcursionsRadio is the world’s one and only jazz and hip-hop radio show. The show connects the dots between jazz and hip-hop and features special guests from both genres who talk about how they create music and the role these two influential styles play in their creativity. Each week, ExcursionsRadio plays music by artists like Miles Davis, A Tribe Called Quest, John Coltrane, Nas, Thelonious Monk, Digable Planets and many others, focusing particularly on hip-hop that samples directly from jazz. The show also features guests such as Christian McBride, The Pharcyde, Billy Childs, Slum Village, and Gretchen Parlato.