Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz Interview Series featuring legendary jazz keyboardist, composer, arranger, and bandleader Mark Adams.
We caught up with Mark to discuss his acclaimed 2026 album This Is Neo-Soul, a powerful recording that celebrates the continuing evolution of soul, jazz, funk, and groove-based music while honoring the lasting influence of the late jazz-funk icon Roy Ayers.
Released just over a year after Ayers’ passing, This Is Neo-Soul brings together fifteen all-star musicians connected to the working bands of Roy Ayers, Lonnie Liston Smith, Luther Vandross, Gloria Gaynor, Gil Scott-Heron, and Chaka Khan. The project is not simply a tribute album—it is a continuation of a musical language that Mark helped shape over more than two decades as the keyboardist, arranger, and musical anchor of Roy Ayers’ touring group Ubiquity.
In this conversation, we explore Mark’s remarkable career, his years on the road performing thousands of concerts around the world, the creation of This Is Neo-Soul, the enduring power of jazz-funk and neo-soul, and his vision for the future of the music.
This is a fascinating discussion with a musician who has lived at the intersection of jazz, soul, funk, improvisation, and groove for decades.
Get the album and learn more:
Mark Adams – This Is Neo-SoulÂ
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