Brass Queens
See you at the Lakefront for the Back to School Bash, featuring the incredible talents of Brass Queens!
Hailing from Brooklyn, Brass Queens is a female-led brass band featuring all-female horns with a sound that is deeply inspired by the New Orleans tradition. They regularly tour across the country and internationally, appearing on festival stages including the Telluride Jazz Festival, Ottawa Jazz Festival, Northlands Music Festival, MusikFest, and Exit Zero Jazz Festival.
With the New Orleans Brass Band tradition at its core, the songs are spiced with a wide range of musical influences including balkan, mambo, film scores, pop, and classic rock. Expanding on the signature sound that already defined Brass Queens, this album showcases their versatility by delivering intricate horn lines, driving grooves, and their ability to construct a wall of sound. Vol. I tells their story so far, through triumphant anthems, joyous odes to friendship, and danceable tunes representative of their high energy performance style.
“We take our musical inspiration from the New Orleans second-line tradition,” trumpeter Stephanie King says. “Then we infuse that foundation with the energy of New York to create something truly special.” The result is equal parts Big Easy and Big Apple—a distinctly modern, energetic take on traditional numbers. Initially gaining popularity through their inspired street performances and pop ups during the COVID necessitated live-music shutdown, the band has gone from busking in Prospect Park to bringing their thrilling live performances to audiences across North America—whether at New York venues such as the Blue Note and Brooklyn Bowl or multi-band events like the Northlands Music & Arts Festival and the Ottawa Jazz Festival. In one surreal booking, they even appeared at The Met Gala.