Congratulations to the 2025 JSJA Winners
Honoring the memory of John Stites and his passion for jazz music
Honoring the memory of John Stites and his passion for jazz music
Posted September 11, 2025
The JSJAO will partner with The Gilmore to present the first 2025 Rising Star Jazz performance – GRAMMY winning pianist, drummer and composer Luther S. Allison on Saturday, October 4. Allison will perform with his trio (Zwelakhe-Duma F. Bell le Pere on bass and David Alvarez III, on drums) at 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm at Cori Terry Theatre in Kalamazoo. The Gilmore regards Allison as “one of today’s most in-demand jazz artists” and noted that he has worked with many highly regarded jazz performers including Samara Joy, Jazzmeia Horn, Helen Sung, Rodney Whitaker, Etienne Charles, and Ulysses Owens Jr. A graduate of the University of Tennessee (where he studied with Jazz Messengers’ pianist Donald Brown and developed a style reminiscent of Mulgrew Miller) and Michigan State University’s Master’s program, Allison credits his early success to “unique opportunities to play with his elders”.
Allison’s southern upbringing in North Carolina is credited with the gospel and blues influences evident in his music. He began playing drums at 5 and studied classical piano, but his serious interest in jazz started when he was a junior in high school and was selected as the pianist for a Jazz Arts Charlotte program. He made his first professional recording at 19 and 4 years later he was playing gigs in the well-known New York City jazz clubs.
Allison’s 2024 debut album titled “I Owe it All to You” is dedicated to everyone who made his success possible. The spirit of the album was characterized by his mentor and teacher Donald Brown as that of a “humble and modest guy” with a “talent that is there, but also the work ethic and the creativity, which you can’t really teach”. These qualities make Luther S. Allison and his trio the perfect choice for the first Gilmore 2025 Jazz Rising Star concert. Allison is the kind of “rising star” that John Stites hoped would inspire young musicians and new audiences to appreciate jazz and its role as a uniquely American musical genre.
We hope you will join us at the Cori Terry Theatre on October 4 to hear the Luther S. Allison trio and share JSJAO’s joy to partner with the Gilmore in “honoring professional exceptionalism in jazz music” and “expanding public awareness and appreciation of jazz” This is the mission that John Stites outlined for the JSJAO and which the JSJAO has had the honor of administering in partnership with The Gilmore for the past 5 years.
Photo credit: Dante Rionda
Recording with John was always a treat ... his gentle demeanor was deeply appreciated.
Mark Sahlgren
The John Stites Jazz Awards (JSJA) are funded by the John Stites Jazz Artist Organization.
The organization funds advanced studies for emerging jazz musicians, as well as personal development projects which enhance their career opportunities.