Can't Get a Job as a Jazz Artist? Start a Jazz Club!

Can't Get a Job as a Jazz Artist? Start a Jazz Club!

Author: Easy Jazz FM July 13, 2025 Duration: 1:05:50

Al and Erica Wong had trouble getting jobs as musicians. So they decided to just open up their own jazz club and hire themselves! That's exactly what they did and their new club, called Jazz at 248 in downtown Ottawa Canada is creating a buzz in the city's jazz community. The couple explained to host Stefan Zaichkowski that they wanted a club where jazz artists of all kinds - beginners included - can jam and practice in front of an audience.


Produced by the team behind the popular soft jazz internet radio station, Easy Jazz Spotlight brings the microphone into the room with the people who shape the sound. This isn't a lecture or a history lesson, though you'll certainly pick up plenty of that along the way. Instead, each episode unfolds as a genuine conversation with a working musician, a thoughtful composer, or a historian who connects the dots. We get into the craft behind the chords and the stories behind the standards, but we also explore why this particular form of expression feels so necessary now. The discussions naturally circle back to jazz's unique role in our often chaotic world-how its improvisational heart and collaborative spirit can offer a different kind of logic, and even a sense of calm and well-being, for those who listen closely. Tune in to hear artists explain their process, share personal inspirations, and reflect on what the genre means to them and to us. You'll come away from this podcast with a deeper appreciation not just for the music itself, but for the quiet resilience and creative joy it represents. Easy Jazz FM created this series to extend the feeling of their radio channel, offering a more intimate, voice-driven companion where the focus is on the creators and the thoughtful space their work inhabits.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Easy Jazz Spotlight
Podcast Episodes
Focused and driven, with a calm smile: Ron Carter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:34
He's the most recorded jazz bassist in history. Ron Carter, also known as "maestro" has won three grammy awards and was part of Miles Davis's "Second Great Quintet" from 1963 to 1968. Since then, Ron has performed with a…
"I was too shy to sing" - Juno Award Winner Bria Skonberg [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:14
Canadian trumpeter, vocalist and songwriter Bria Skonberg has been described as the "shining hope of hot jazz" by the New York Times and "one of the most versatile and imposing musicians of her generation" by the Wall St…
The "Sheer Will and Daring" of Jazz Impresario Cory Weeds [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:42
Known as the hardest working man in the jazz business, saxophonist and entrepreneur Cory Weeds successfully ran his own jazz club for 14 years. Downbeat Magazine acknowledged that Vancouver's "Cellar Jazz Club" was among…
50 Years on the Bass - Rick Kilburn [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:00
Rick Kilburn of Vancouver, British Columbia has enjoyed a 50-year career as a jazz bassist. Over the years, Rick has worked with the top names in jazz - including Dave Brubeck, Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan, Paul Desmond, D…
American Jazz Singer / Songwriter Halie Loren [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:35
Halie Loren is an international, award-winning jazz singer/songwriter. Her multi-genre and multi-lingual musical blend across her ten albums to-date has earned several national and international awards in multiple genres…
R&B/Hip-Hop artist Chlo [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:28
Introducing "Chlo", an R&B/Hip-Hop artist from New Westminster, British Columbia whose unique tones and bold energy light up every stage she touches. Chlo says she learned, from her musician father, that taking risks can…
Canadian Jazz Star Laila Biali [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:27:36
She's one of the biggest jazz stars in Canada who performs worldwide. Multi-award winning Laila Biali is a singer, pianist and host of a national CBC music show (called Saturday Night Jazz). Laila has headlined many jazz…