Drummer E.J. Strickland (Enoch Jamal Strickland) was born in Gainesville, raised in Miami, Florida, and currently resides in New York City. His sound on the instrument has been described as “fields of cumulative energy, clouds of feather-touch and heavy-handed syncopations, latent with power like an oncoming storm” by Thomas Conrad of Downbeat Magazine. Some of his early influences include drummers like Elvin Jones, “Philly” Joe Jones, Tony Williams, Jack DeJohnette, Roy Haynes, Art Blakey, & Jeff “Tain” Watts.

At age 11, he was taught the rudiments & drumset by his father Michael Strickland. He started playing drums & percussion in the middle school jazz band and concert band. He decided early on that he wanted to pursue a career in music, furthering his studies in Jazz & Classical music at New World School Of The Arts. He moved to New York in 1997 to attend the conservatory New School for Jazz & Contemporary Music. His first gigs were short stints on the New York scene with Wynton Marsalis, Vincent Herring, & Russell Malone. He had much longer stints with Ravi Coltrane, David Weiss, & Marcus Strickland (his twin brother saxophonist). Since his career started, he’s been fortunate to appear on occasion with Nneenna Freelon, David Sanchez, Cassandra Wilson, Lizz Wright, and many others. He has recently toured with bands such as The Manuel Valera Trio and Reggie Washington’s Vintage New Acoustic. Since 2009, he has been touring & recording with his own projects such as The E.J. Strickland Quintet, Transient Beings, & Pads N Loops.

When one hears E.J.’s music, you can hear simple lyrical melodies supported by complex figures from the rhythm section. His latest album is “Warriors For Peace” 2018. His previous albums include “The Undying Spirit” 2015 and “In this Day” 2009. He is currently touring worldwide with 2 projects: The E.J. Strickland Quintet and newly formed group Pads N Loops.

Some highlights are The E.J. Strickland Quintet participating in “New York Jazz All-Stars” (a co-curatorial venture between Jazz At Lincoln Center & DeQunta Producciones), where the band toured all over Mexico for a series of concerts & education activities in April of 2019. The E.J. Strickland Quintet has also been touring very successfully all over Europe since 2017 and is booked by Jammin’ Colors in Belgium.

Supporting Musicians: E.J. Strickland - drums
Jaleel Shaw - alto & soprano saxes
Marcus Strickland - tenor sax & bass clarinet
Luis Perdomo - piano
Michael Olatuja - bass