BREAKING
TRADITION
Jazz Republic Entertainment Group, LLC is co-founded by Grammy-Award Winning trumpeter Bijon Watson and critically-acclaimed singer/songwriter Niles Thomas. Their collaborative first album It’s A Crossover Thang was up for a 2022 Grammy® Nomination for "Best Jazz Vocal Album" and they have been bringing jazz to the forefront of the mainstream market – that place where jazz crosses over into multi-genres.
For those with a low tolerance for what "jazz" is perceived to be, we've taken a genre-bending approach, or what we call "A Jazz Republic", eroding the boundaries between jazz and mainstream music, writing and performing original music in a vocabulary that combines elements of multiple styles, or what some are now calling alt-jazz.
"It's an easy pill to swallow", says Founders Bijon Watson and Niles Thomas. "We want to welcome everyone to our music table."
To this end, we present a unique blend of world-renowned artists including GRAMMY® Award-Winning and GRAMMY® Nominees whose original music and artistry embody what we call "The Art and Lifestyle of Jazz".
As one of the coolest and most influential presenters of the new jazz age, attracting an enthusiastic new-found audience, Jazz Republic Entertainment Group increases the awareness and participation in diverse musical experiences worldwide – bringing multiple productions including the popular Jazz Republic Concert Series at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts in Las Vegas and the B-SIDE Morning Brew with Bij & Niles radio show broadcasted on KUNV 91.5FM Jazz & More in Las Vegas.
ABOUT US
Bijon Watson
Co-Founder / Co-Producer / Artist
Grammy® Award-Winning trumpeter Bijon Watson's career as a musician and educator spans more than 25 years and has taken him around the globe to perform for audiences worldwide and has recorded and performed with iconic artists, including Michael Bublé, the late Natalie Cole, Justin Timberlake, Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Harry Connick Jr., Diana Krall, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Arturo Sandoval, Barbara Morrison to Alicia Keys… and the list goes on. On television, Bijon has performed on episodes of “American Idol”, “The Tonight Show”, “The Grammy Awards”, “BET Music Awards” and has made appearances in films, including “La La Land”, and has recorded on several soundtracks with studios such as Paramount Pictures, Fox and Disney, including “Despicable Me 2” and “The Secret Life of Pets”.
A dedicated educator, Bijon is an in-demand clinician that has given master classes and clinics to colleges, conservatories, secondary schools, high schools, and middle schools throughout the United States, and Europe, as well as maintaining a private lesson studio.
Niles Thomas
Co-Founder / Co-Producer / Artist
Niles Thomas is a critically-acclaimed artist, composer and producer previously signed under the EMI Music and Warner Bros Music umbrellas. As an artist, Thomas has toured the globe performing on stages worldwide and has had his original music licensed in film and television in Europe, Asia and America, including shows on HBO, NBC, TBS, Discovery Channel and Showtime, to name a few. As a music producer, Thomas has been credited on many records, co-producing and writing in various genres including jazz, pop, electronic, R&B to country, for independent and signed major artists in the mainstream market.
Niles Thomas' diverse music experiences as an artist, composer and producer have led him to sharing his knowledge of the music industry at universities in the U.S. and Europe.