About this event
The twenty-two-year-old phenom has commanded festival headlining stages, including Coachella and Met Life Stadium opening for The Rolling Stones. TAZ starred on television and Broadway, and has been championed by some of music's biggest stars. Now, he prepares to unveil his long-anticipated recorded debut. TAZ is currently a touring guitarist with multi-Grammy winning performer Jon Batiste. For TAZ, music is a calling. TAZ was inspired at age eight to pick up a guitar after seeing the movie School of Rock, and just a few years later he was starring in School of Rock the Musical on Broadway. By age sixteen, he had already performed with countless stars — including Lady Gaga, Jon Batiste, Stevie Nicks, Gregg Allman, Quinn XCII, Mac DeMarco, Gary Clark Jr., Derek Trucks, Slash, and The Revivalists — and earned an endorsement from John Mayer as "the first young guitar player that is not a gimmick." A live performer like no other — seamlessly slipping between blistering guitar riffs and soulful vocals with a carefree charisma — TAZ built an international fan base through extensive touring in the US, Europe, Asia, Canada, and the Caribbean. TAZ has an engaged social media following, capping a recent headlining tour with sold-out shows at Bowery Ballroom in New York City and across the USA. In collaboration with Grammy-winning producer Theron "Neff-U" Feemster (Justin Bieber, Doja Cat, Kendrick Lamar, Train, Michael Jackson), TAZ has written and recorded a slate of material for his genre-bending debut studio project that is sure to captivate his existing fans and grab the attention of an entirely new audience. TAZ is graduating Yale University in May 2025 and while attending school, he continued to extend his acting, musicianship, and multi-media performances in original directions to explore new creative dimensions. TAZ's acting continues to flourish, recently landing a role in Sony Pictures release of "SATURDAY NIGHT" the major motion picture based on the first episode of Saturday Night Live. SAM THOUSAND(formally known as Sam Trump) is a multi-instrumentalist, singer/writer, producer/composer and a 3Arts Recipient with 15+ years of experience in live performance art, curation, and self management. Since picking up the trumpet at age 7, his artistry has allowed him the opportunity to perform in all corners of North America as well as overseas. Sam Thousand is the CEO of Superlative Muzak, Inc., the company through which all of his music & music business endeavors are executed. Some past partners and clients include UChicago, DCASE, Chicago Ideas, Chicago Urban League, City Cast Chicago, Lululemon, SheaMoisture, Apple, REI, Volkswagen/JettaHaus, T-Mobile, & NBCUniversal. Big on legacy, Sam Thousand remains a teacher, learner, and sharer of knowledge to peers and youth. Sam has partnered with youth-focused entities such as Chicago Public Schools, The Noble Network, and Embarc to teach workshops and mentor youth through private instruction. Though teaching is important in his life the stage continues to call, making performance art the current and primary focus in his career. Sam does plan to retire as an educator or sorts. In the last several years Sam Thousand has gained experience producing soundtracks for theatrical dance and film. His Chicago-based organization 'Production:COLORS' premiered its first original 45-min dance show at the Chicago Cultural Center(2016) and its second at the Museum of Contemporary Art(2018) with raving reviews. Sam's first official composer credit was for the web series FUNNY MARRIED STUFF(2016) and a second for HIPLET: BECAUSE WE CAN(2019) which landed him in a panel of film scorers at the SXSW 2020 Film Festival. His first feature-length film composition credit came with the Chicago documentary UNAPOLOGETIC(2020). In 2021 he composed and performed the theme songs to the daily Chicago podcast show, CITY CAST CHICAGO. "My aim is to establish myself as a pioneer of new direction within the performing arts scene. Through writing, consultation, and artistic space making, my ultimate goal is to inspire others to do whatever it is they love most, with the ambition of positively affecting our society. It is my hope that with every path crossed, inspiration transpires.
Artists
Venue
Martyrs'
3855 N Lincoln Ave · Chicago · IL
Event details
DateJun 26
Doors7:00 PM
Show8:00 PM
Price$25+
TypeEvent
VenueMartyrs'