SEPTEMBER 27-28, 2025

Laura-Simone Quartet

In 2024, Laura-Simone joined A2JF as ⅓ of the majestic GSL trio (w/Gayelynn McKinney & Sequoia Snyder ) but this year we have the pleasure of welcoming her with her own quartet, featuring, MSU up and comer, Paloma Ximena (saxophone), the fabulous Nate Winn (drums), and the inspiring Xavier Davis (piano). You can see The Laura-Simone Quartet as part of the A2JF on Saturday, September 27th at 5:30pm, just ahead of Rick Roe, at the First Congregational Church, 608 E. William St., A2.

Rick Roe Trio

Ft. Rodney Whitaker & Ali Jackson

Join us at A2JF on Saturday, September 27th at 7:30pm at the First Congregational Church, 608 E. William St. Ann Arbor, and hear for yourself, the singular brilliance of Rick’s approach to this transformational music. He will be joined by the Director of Michigan State University’s Jazz Studies and literally the only university department head we’ve ever heard of who got the job without a degree (because he’s just THAT GREAT), the brilliant Rodney Whitaker (bass) and the amazing Ali Jackson (drums).

Kenji Lee Fortune Teller Quartet

On Sunday, September 28th A2JF will move over to the Ravens Club. Starting at 8pm with Kenji Lee’s Fortune Teller Quartet. Normally performing as The Fortune Teller Trio, this project converges on a common sound that extends far beyond the traditional sax canon. The project encompasses a variety of textures ranging from pastoral meditation to exhilarating displays of raw intensity.

Despite its breadth of sonic temperament, Fortune Teller is grounded in the unifying principles of Truth, Goodness, and Beauty central to Japanese Kyūdō, an approach to archery grounded in spiritual practice. This allows the ensemble to blossom with improvisational spontaneity, achieving a harmony of technique and sprit that speaks through their debut album, Kyūdō.

Aya Sekine Group

Saturday, September 27th at 9:30pm Ravens Club

Aya Sekine is a Japanese jazz pianist, improviser, and composer whose dynamic, genre-defying career spans over three decades across Japan, Southeast Asia, and the United States. Born in Osaka in 1971 and raised between Japan and Singapore, she studied jazz piano at Berklee College of Music and developed her foundation in New York City’s underground scenes during the 1990s. She later became a key figure in the Southeast Asian jazz ecosystem before relocating to Detroit, Michigan in 2024, after being awarded a U.S. EB-1 Artist Green Card for her extraordinary ability as a jazz expert.

Her artistry is rooted in Black American music traditions and expressed through a rhythm-centered, percussive approach—reflecting her early background in drumming. Known for her strong sense of swing, her playing is infused with soulfulness, a punk-like edge, and the cultural nuance of her Japanese heritage and Southeast Asian experiences, forming a style that is unmistakably personal.

Arnold/Jassi/Kramer

Saturday, September 27th 11:00pm Ravens Club

John Arnold, formerly of the brilliant Detroit-based world guitar duo Blackman & Arnold, came to world music and jazz by way of Detroit electronica. Founding member of the acid jazz combo, Jazzhead, Arnold is a multi-instrumentalist and producer known for his passionate and complex approach to guitar.

Pathe Jassi, known among jazz musicians for his rare ability to combine hard bebop with a polyrhythmic African sound, spent his early career playing and recording alongside legendary West African singers Youssou N’Dour and Cheikh Lo.

Ann Arbor native son, Jesse Kramer is one of the most in demand drummers in Metro Detroit. Kramer began learning drums at the age of five, and grew up studying and working with local jazz masters including Sean Dobbins and Vincent York. Kramer graduated from the University of Michigan School of Music, where he studied with 2025 Kresge Eminent Artist, Marion Hayden, and the legendary Detroit composer Geri Allen. While attending U of M, Kramer was awarded a DownBeat Magazine Student Music Award, and represented the University at the International Association of Schools of Jazz meeting in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Jeff Haas Quintet

Sunday, September 28th, 5:30pm First Congregational Church, Pilgrim Hall

Rooted in the original works of acclaimed composer Jeff Haas, this eclectic quintet explores the intersection of jazz, funk, R&B, and world music soundscapes. The result is a rich, genre-crossing musical voice, at once soulful, inventive, and deeply human. With a lineup of exceptional Michigan artists, the group crafts performances that invite connection, reflection, and joy.

Theo Croker

Sunday, September 28th, 2025 7:00pm, First Congregational Church Pilgrim Hall

This year’s brilliant headliner is the amazing Theo Croker! Theo Croker is a Grammy-nominated American jazz trumpeter, composer, producer, and vocalist known for his boundary-pushing, Afrofuturist sound that blends post-bop, hip-hop, electronic, and R&B. The grandson of trumpet legend Doc Cheatham, Croker spent formative years performing in Shanghai before returning to the U.S. to release critically acclaimed records. In 2014, Dee Dee Bridgewater produced his early Afro Physicist recording and he’s continued to develop his singular approach to the merging of Jazz and multiple modern musics. Don’t miss this!!