Speaking Of The Arts

Hello everyone and welcome to Speaking of the Arts. I am Mike Epstein, your host. Today’s episode is a real treat. We are featuring the drummer, educator, entrepreneur, author, non-profit organizer, band leader, producer, etc. etc., the list really goes on and on, Ulysses Owen’s Jr. I’ve always been a fan of Ulysses’s drumming but until I did my research for this interview I had no idea how multifaceted he is. In fact, it was a challenge just to summarize his extensive biography for this introduction. A few quick highlights - Ulysses has been named a Rising Star by DownBeat’s Critics Poll for five years straight. He is a recipient of the 2013 ASCAP Plus Award, a Gold Medal winner of the 2014 Global Music Awards, a 2015 Jazz at Lincoln Center Swing! Awards Honoree, and 2019 “3rd Runner-Up,” in Classic Jazz Category in the Modern Drummer Magazine Readers Poll. Among many of Owens’s accomplishments are his performances on the 2010 GRAMMY award-winning Kurt Elling live album, Dedicated to You, and the 2012 GRAMM