June 1, 2026
Blue Note Records has signed pianist and producer Kiefer who will release his debut solo album for the legendary jazz label this Fall. Kiefer has also announced Over The Breaks, a new festival he curates which will take place at the Lodge Room in Los Angeles on September 18-19 featuring a line-up that includes GENA (Karriem Riggins + Liv.e), CARRTOONS, Luke Titus, Shibo, and more TBA. Ticket info is available at overthebreaksmusic.com.
“‘Jazz adjacent,’ as a term, presents a problem for the artists under that label,” says Kiefer. “It is vague and clunky, and it’s no coincidence that many acts caught in ‘jazz adjacent’ limbo struggle to find their place on festival lineups. I choose to call my music ‘Over The Breaks’ and decided to curate a festival of acts who make similar sounds. Over The Breaks, named after a J Dilla track, features artists that represent this sound to me. It means everything to have the legendary Karriem Riggins—co-producer of the original ‘Over the Breaks’ track—headlining night one.”
On his signing to Blue Note, Kiefer says “When I was four years old, my dad used to play recordings of great jazz musicians and make me recite their names: John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Clark. The catalog he used to educate me was Blue Note. Blue Note is the most iconic jazz label of all time. As someone who loves jazz, to be on the Blue Note roster is a huge honor. As someone who was raised on the Blue Note catalog, it is deeply sentimental and life-affirming.”
“Kiefer represents a new generation of pianist/composers who grew up equally fluent in jazz harmony, hip hop production, and beat culture,” says Blue Note President Don Was. “What makes him so special is that, beneath the modern production, is a deeply emotional and sophisticated musician with real touch, feel, and compositional identity. He’s one of the clearest examples of where contemporary music is headed and we’re thrilled to release his records on the Blue Note label.”
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Kiefer is a pianist and producer. He began playing piano as a child and producing beats at around age twelve, eventually moving from San Diego to Los Angeles to study under renowned jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell at UCLA’s Jazz Studies program. There, he started thinking about the connection between the jazz piano he studied and the beats he created outside of school. Kiefer has since released a series of acclaimed albums on Stones Throw Records. His 2024 NPR Tiny Desk Concert featured his trio with Luke Titus and Pera Krstajic plus special guests Charlie Hunter, Nate Smith, CARRTOONS, and Theo Croker. In addition to his solo work, Kiefer has produced, played, and written for artists including Drake and Anderson .Paak, winning a GRAMMY Award for his work with the latter. He has also collaborated with the likes of Dr. Dre, De La Soul, Pete Rock, KAYTRANADA, Kenny Beats, Stanley Clarke, and Walter Smith III.
