New Orleans’ own Hot 8 Brass Band has epitomized New Orleans street music for over a decade. The band plays the traditional Second Line parades, hosted each Sunday afternoon by Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs, infusing their performances with the funk and energy that makes New Orleans music loved around the world. The members of the Hot 8 Brass Band were born and raised in New Orleans and many began playing together in high school. What makes the Hot 8 so special are the sounds they coax from their well-loved, well-worn instruments. An evening with the Hot 8 is like no other...
Members of the Hot 8 Brass Band have toured in Japan, Italy, France, Spain, Finland, England and Sardinia. The band performs annually at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and at world and jazz festivals across the US and Europe. Members of the band have been featured in both Spike Lee documentaries, When the Levees Broke and If God is Willing and Da Creek Don’t Rise. The band was also featured in the second season of the HBO series Tremé. They appeared at The Apollo with Dr. John, Lou Reed, Nicolas Payton and others for the annual Great Day in Harlem. The Hot 8 has released three critically acclaimed recordings and is featured on the latest Blind Boys of Alabama recording on Time-Life Records.
The Hot 8 Brass Band has been part of an important relief project following Hurricane Katrina. SAVE OUR BRASS! is a local grass-roots project that has brought music and instruments to shelters, temporary trailer parks, and communities across the Gulf Coast.
