Widely recognized for his natural ability to entertain, the young Marcus Anderson has performed with groups such as Pieces of a Dream and Four 80 East. Marcus has also been invited to perform with or open for Peter White, Boney James, Mike Phillips, Kirk Whalum, Gerald Albright, George Duke, Everette Harp, Wynton Marsalis, Alex Bugnon, Nnenna Freelon, Bob Baldwin, Matt Marshak, Ledisi, Jennifer Holiday, Lalah Hathaway and many others. He’s now packing the venues with devout fans who shout for more. “For me, it’s about the crowd”, said Anderson, “I feed off their energy”.
After Anderson’s breakthrough in contemporary jazz circles as the 2009 winner of the Capital Jazz Fest Challenge, this multi-talented composer, saxophonist and flutist is embracing every opportunity to perform and inspire fans. With the release of NOW, his third solo CD, Anderson’s goal is to capture the energy from his live shows and make this collection of music his most dynamic, joyful and creative recordings yet.
Anderson, a South Carolina native, is from a large musical family of seven siblings. Growing up, both of his parents sang regularly, but it was his father who introduced him to Jazz, which has become his passion. He graduated from Dorman High School in Roebuck, SC and after graduation he continued his jazz studies at North Carolina Central University. There he was a member of the program’s world renowned Jazz Ensemble directed by Dr. Ira Wiggins. He studied with Branford Marsalis and Gospel Saxophonist, Donald Hayes for several years.