Mario Abney concerts

About Mario Abney

Mario Abney is a Chicago-born trumpeter and bandleader whose jazz draws together bebop, blues, soul, funk, and New Orleans second-line brass. The immediate reason to pay attention is his working presence at Andy’s Jazz Club: its August calendar schedules him for two 75-minute sets on recurring Thursdays, framing Abney as a current fixture in one of Chicago’s central jazz rooms.

From Chicago to New Orleans

Abney grew up in Chicago’s south suburbs, attended Thornton Township High School, studied music education and jazz studies at Central State University in Ohio, then relocated to New Orleans to build his professional career. His musical route began on piano at age seven, expanded to drums by age 11, and turned toward trumpet during high school. Published profiles identify Abney as the leader of The Abney Effect; founding personnel receive limited credit in the available record. The searchable release trail begins with The Abney Effect, Vol. 1 (Instant Grits), issued in 2017.

Records that map the bandleader’s route

The Abney Effect, Vol. 1 (Instant Grits) arrived in 2017; the label credit remains absent from the listings reviewed. Its title track, “Instant Grits,” became a durable calling card: Reggie’s notes that Abney performed it on Good Morning America in 2019, and Andy’s identifies his working palette as modern jazz, bebop, blues, soul, second-line brass, and funk. The release matters as the document that put the Abney Effect name beside a program of original material shaped for a brass-forward band format. “Ora Sweet Ora,” another track connected to the album, carries credited guests Yoshi Takatsuji, Simon Lott, Jesse Morrow, Josh Atkin, and Kaliq Woods in streaming listings.

Abney followed with the 2020 single “Love and Trust,” featuring Baba Ken, listed under Mario Abney with no separate label field. In 2021, “He No Comply” widened the billing to include Jeremy Thomas, Baba Ken Amen, and Brenton Love, giving the project a specifically credited collaborative lineup. His latest album, Right Now, arrived in 2024 through Supreme Music 2000. It is a nine-track full-length credited to Abney alone, with titles including “Chapter 1,” “Up Goes the Prophet,” “Woodman,” “Take Your Time with Me,” “Mayim Meadow,” “Home,” and the title track. That sequence shifts the discography from guest-marked singles toward an extended statement under his own name.

Guests, peers, and community bands

Abney’s released collaborations include Baba Ken on “Love and Trust” and the four-person credit on “He No Comply.” His professional history also places him onstage with artists including Erykah Badu, Wynton Marsalis, Roy Hargrove, Jimmy Cobb, Ellis Marsalis, Christian McBride, Nicholas Payton, Kermit Ruffins, and Bill Summers, according to All About Jazz and Andy’s. In Chicago, he also leads the Windy City Ramblers, a changing brass-band-sized collective established in 2022 around school concerts, clinics, workshops, parades, and community appearances.

What the Chicago bookings establish

The press record offers concrete guidance for a Mario Abney show. Andy’s presents him in a compact, dinner-club format: on August 13, 20, and 27, 2026, the calendar assigns 6:00–7:15 p.m. and 8:15–9:30 p.m. sets to “Mario Abney,” billed visually as Abney Effect Electrified. The same pattern returns September 3. A December 31, 2025 Andy’s engagement placed Abney and the Abney Effect in an 11:00 p.m.–12:15 a.m. seating. Chicago Star Media also reported a Tuesday-night Andy’s run for the Windy City Ramblers in 2025. Expect a bandleader working material across trumpet, brass-band, jazz, blues, soul, and funk frameworks; the venue’s own description also records Abney dancing and calling encouragement to fellow players during performances.

Current dates

Right Now, Abney’s 2024 album on Supreme Music 2000, remains his latest listed full-length release. His current public schedule centers on Chicago: Andy’s Jazz Club has two sets scheduled for August 13, August 20, August 27, and September 3, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. each evening. For CrowdMate readers, those eight listed entries amount to four Thursday engagements at the same River North venue, with an early and late set each night.

Start here

Start with “Instant Grits” for the Abney Effect’s signature-era material; “Love and Trust” for the Baba Ken collaboration; and “Right Now” for the title track from Abney’s latest full-length, which places the trumpeter alone on the album credit.

Sources

1. Calendar — Andy's Jazz Club
2. New Years Eve 3rd Seating — Andy's Jazz Club
3. Mario Abney | Jazz Trumpet – Biography, Albums & More — All About Jazz
4. The Windy City Ramblers: Great jazz music–even greater mission — Chicago Star Media
5. Mario Abney — Shazam
6. The Abney Effect — Reggies Chicago
7. Right Now — Shazam
8. Love and Trust (feat. Baba Ken) - Single — Shazam
9. He No Comply - Single — Shazam