Christian McBride will be roasted at a fundraiser at NJPAC, June 6.
Eight-time Grammy-winning jazz bassist, bandleader, composer, educator and producer Christian McBride will be roasted at a June 6 fundraiser at NJPAC in Newark, with proceeds going to NJPAC and the Montclair-based educational organization, Jazz House Kids. McBride is NJPAC’s jazz advisor and is also the artistic director of Jazz House Kids, which his wife, Melissa Walker, founded.
Cedric the Entertainer will serve as roastmaster, and comedians George Wallace and Jeff Ross will be among those doing the roasting. Ross — who grew up in Newark, Union and Springfield — is a regular at celebrity roasts all over the country and is nicknamed the Roastmaster General.
Information on sponsorship opportunities and tickets is available at njpac.org/event/njpacs-celebrity-roast-of-christian-mcbride.
The event takes place about a week after McBride’s 50th birthday, which will be on May 31. He will spend most of May performing with his Inside Straight Band (featuring drummer Carl Allen, saxophonist Steve Wilson, pianist Peter Martin and vibraphonist Warren Wolf), whose Live at the Village Vanguard album, recorded in 2014, came out last year.
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