Instruments: Vocals, Guitar
Date of Birth: December 29, 1959
Place of Birth: Birmingham, Alabama

Considered a musical prodigy, Essix is the youngest musician to be inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. He was named "Best jazz Musician of 1995" by Birmingham magazine.

Born in Birmingham, Essix grew up during some of the city's turbulent years as the Civil Rights movement got underway. At age 10, he got his first guitar and amplifier and taught himself to play. Essix was playing guitar in his first band at age 13. His music includes the influences of artists such as Al Green, Stevie Wonder and the Isley Brothers, along with Jimi Hendrix, George Benson and the Beatles.

Toward the end of his teenage years, Essix began his journey into the world of jazz. A year after completing his first recording in 1989, Essix released a second successful CD, but then decided to return to school and put his musical career on hold. He left the South to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston, an experience that would change his life. Essix recalls the years at Berklee as when he began to grow as a musician, finding inspiration from the pool of talent he found in the area.

Of the style he developed, Essix puts it this way: "The result is a sound with a distinctly southern flavor that represents much of who I am as a player and a person. I have always wanted to tell my story in my own way, and now I realize that I must use my own voice on the guitar to do that effectively."

From article in Daily Home Newspaper
Talladega, Alabama
April 6, 2000