As a jazz artist, composer, fashion editor, and lifelong storyteller, I’ve spent my life on and around the stage—often seen, often heard, and just as often, overlooked. I’ve led bands, scored films, walked runways, directed features, and published magazines. But no matter the medium, the throughline has always been the same: real artistry is everywhere—but it doesn’t always get the platform it deserves.
That’s why I created Jazz Influencers.
This magazine was born out of necessity. I saw the need to highlight not just the headliners, but the working artists, the digital trailblazers, the veterans still innovating, and the women rewriting what it means to be seen and heard in this space. I saw the need for a publication that doesn’t just cover jazz—it champions it, in all its modern forms.
We live in an era where influence looks different. It might come from a viral YouTube solo or a Grammy-winning composition. It might come from a stylistic choice, a political stance, or the courage to create your own tour. Jazz Influencers explores it all.
In our inaugural issue, we speak to that evolution. You’ll find insights from icons like Diana Krall and Bunny Brunel, and feel the ongoing pulse of Art Blakey’s influence. We address fashion as part of stage presence, and AI as a new player in improvisation. We look at YouTube sensations redefining jazz exposure, and the essential gear that keeps artists sounding like themselves. We publish the truth—through storytelling, gear guides, columns, commentary, and style.
But beyond the pages, this magazine is about something bigger: recognition. Because recognition isn’t just applause. It’s acknowledgment. It’s equity. It’s the quiet correction of who gets to be included in the archive of excellence. I know what it feels like to be dismissed despite the accolades, to be the bandleader and still be talked over. I know what it means to be told to “look the part” when you’ve already outplayed the room.
As a multitalented artist who has lived in multiple creative worlds—music, fashion, film, and publishing—I’ve always defied easy categorization. I’ve scored films, directed narrative features, and conducted in-depth interviews with hundreds of musicians, actors, and designers. As the founder and publisher of AGENDA, a fashion and lifestyle magazine that has spanned nearly two decades, I’ve had the privilege of telling stories others overlooked. As executive editor of Virtuoso Bass (a publication devoted to the low-end brilliance of bass legends like Bunny Brunel), Schmooze Jazz, The Performing Artist, and now Jazz Influencers, my mission has always been clear: lift the curtain, honor the grind, and celebrate the artistry.
And Jazz Influencers is personal. I’ve held onto this title for nearly a decade—waiting for the right moment to launch. That moment is now.
Because Jazz Influencers isn’t about trends—it’s about truth. It’s about documenting the stories, struggles, and brilliance that shape the music we love. We are more than labels. We are sound, we are style, we are story.
This is only the beginning.
— Kaylene Peoples
Founder & Editor-in-Chief
Jazz Influencers / KL Publishing Group