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Raymond Nelson

About Me

My Jazz Story

I love jazz because it more than just music, it's a relationship builder and a family of some the greatest and kindest people in the world.

My House Concert Story

Three or four years passed as my wife and I decided if we wanted to attend the Seabreeze Jazz Festival in Panama City Beach, Fl. In 2009 we gave in, thinking we could not do 3 days of jazz. We were blessed to see Wayman Tisdale in one of his last live performances and man, what a performance.! We attended our 11th year in 2019 and since then we have traveled the country and even done the Blue Note Jazz Cruise hosted by Marcus Miller and David Sanborn. In 2018 we attended a festival in Galveston and saw a young violinist Dominique Hammons. I was so inspired by him that I called his manager who convinced me I should be promoting. In May 2019 we did our first Smooth Jazz showcase headlining Dominique. We are now booked out through February and we are still getting calls from artists wanting to play on the Gulf Coast. Our company, Destin Smooth Jazz is focused on making the Panhandle of Florida the Hub of Smooth Jazz in the Southeast. Yes, this from a guy who thought 3 days of jazz was too much. #FloridaJazzCentral #DestinSmoothJazz