Reggie Parker R&B Band from Brooklyn, NY

Gospel music lovers know Reggie from his years of touring and recording with such notables as the Reverend Hezekiah Walker, James Hall. R&B and hip-hop fans have heard his distinctive bass lines accompanying Will Smith and Coolio, among others. He has proven himself as an in-demand sideman many times over. Reggie calls his musical abilities a God-given gift rather than a talent. Growing up in Brooklyn, he took inspiration from the music he heard in the church of his father, the late Reverend Joe L. Parker. He also absorbed the classic R&B/pop sounds of everyone from Stevie Wonder and the Jackson Five to Donny Hathaway and Luther Vandross. At age 12, he convinced his parents to buy him an electric bass guitar; though he confesses it took him a while to master the instrument: "People thought there was no hope. But I kept practicing and practicing and one day it seemed like I literally woke up and knew how to play". Studying the styles of such master bassists as Marcus Miller, Stanley Clarke, and Jaco Pastorius, Reggie developed his own unique sound. He honed his skills while gigging at such venues as Wilson's in Manhattan, where he sat in with various guest players and vocalists. His stint at the club led to live dates with rapper Coolio, Aaron Hall, The Winans and studio sessions with Will Smith (he appears on the hit track "Freakin' It"). By the late '90s, Reggie had also secured a reputation as an in-demand bassist with contemporary gospel artists. He toured extensively with the Reverend Hezekiah Walker & the Love Fellowship Crusade Choir and appeared on four albums by the group. He also contributed to live and studio projects by James Hall, Yolanda Adams, Reverend George Searight, Maurette Brown Clark, and B.B. Jay. Reggie's melodic lines and commitment to the groove made him an asset whether the music was sacred, secular or somewhere in between. Reggie's blend of old school substance and 21st Century style makes his music unpredictable, ear-catching and appealing to a wide variety of music fans. His music paints melodic pictures inside the listener's mind. It's all there in the grooves.

• As | Stevie Wonder