Skillfully balancing chaos and purity, delicacy and weight, pianist, composer, and producer Hope Udobi Nwachukwu stands as a contemporary artist of rare distinction. Born in Washington, D.C., Udobi relocated with his family to Nigeria, where his earliest relationship with jazz began at the age of nine. By fourteen, he returned to the United States and undertook formal private piano study, quickly immersing himself in the discipline, language, and expressive depth of music—a foundation that would shape his singular artistic voice.
Udobi entered the professional music world in 2006, establishing himself as a versatile and highly sought-after sideman for both local and national acts. His trajectory accelerated in 2010 when he joined Washington, D.C.’s acclaimed rock-soul collective Black Alley, touring extensively throughout the United States and Canada and appearing on VH1 and MTV. These formative years helped solidify his presence on the international live-performance circuit and sharpen his command of diverse musical environments.
His breadth of artistry has since led to collaborations and performances with an extraordinary range of artists across multiple genres, such as Dave Chappelle, Mary J. Blige, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Bobby Watson, Delfeayo Marsalis, Naturally 7, Fred Yonnet, Angie Stone, Raheem DeVaughn, Wayna, Kindred The Family Soul, K. Michelle, Scarface, Talib Kweli, Common, GoldLink, The Arti$t, Yaya Bey, and Isaiah Collier. He has been featured in The Washington City Paper and DownBeat, and appeared on the hit Apple TV series Lady in the Lake (2024).
A seasoned international performer, Udobi has toured extensively throughout the United States, Canada, Brazil, Asia, the Middle East, and Australia, with major festival appearances including Governor’s Ball, Montreal International Jazz Festival, and Big Ears Festival—further underscoring his global reach and artistic relevance.
In 2016, he was appointed Artist in Residence at Jazz at Lincoln Center Doha, a prestigious six-week residency that expanded his global perspective and further refined his artistic voice. His forward-thinking approach to sound later led to his selection as a featured speaker at SXSW 2019 for Bose RADAR’s Augmented Audio Experience, where he presented on immersive and 3D audio production while contributing original material to Bose’s augmented audio platform.
Udobi’s debut album, In The Wild, premiered with a sold-out release performance at New York City’s Blue Note Jazz Club. Recorded across New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami, the album’s ten original compositions—culminating in a collaboration with four-time Grammy-winning engineer Jimmy “The Senator” Douglass—form a cinematic, deeply personal, genre-blending body of work that firmly establishes his artistic identity.
He has performed on distinguished stages worldwide, including Arena Stage, Blues Alley, Chris’ Jazz Café, The Lincoln Theatre, History, Smalls, DROM, The Fillmore, The Kennedy Center, The Hamilton, Blue Note Jazz Club, City Recital Hall Angel Place, Vivo Rio, Roxy Theatre, Elsewhere, Northcote Theatre, and Twitter Headquarters.
Udobi continues to perform internationally while continually creating new music, guided by an ever-evolving artistic vision, an unwavering commitment to innovation, and a deep belief in the power of sound to transcend boundaries, connect cultures, and illuminate the human experience.
