Karriem Riggins

Karriem Riggins

Karriem Riggins is a Detroit-born jazz drummer and producer, born in 1975. He begins playing music in Detroit and later moves to New York City in 1994, where he develops his career as a drummer and producer across jazz and hip-hop.

Early life and jazz work

He grows up in Detroit, Michigan, where his parents notice his interest in music when he starts digging through their records. He plays in the studio with his father, Emmanuel, who has performed with jazz guitarist Grant Green. Riggins later studies music and also makes hip-hop in his spare time.

As a drummer, he works with vocalist Betty Carter and plays in her band Jazz Ahead. He also works with trumpeter Roy Hargrove. His jazz credits include performances and recordings with Hank Jones, Ray Brown, Oscar Peterson, Milt Jackson, Donald Byrd, Cedar Walton, Bobby Hutcherson, Kenny Burrell, Benny Green, Mulgrew Miller, Ron Carter, Gary Bartz and Diana Krall.

Hip-hop production and collaborations

Alongside his jazz career, Riggins works as a producer in hip-hop. He produces tracks for Common, Slum Village, The Roots and Erykah Badu. He tours with Common three times and produces “Play Your Cards Right” for the film Smoking Aces. He also helps Kanye West demo theme songs for Mission Impossible III, featuring Twista and Keyshia Cole.

He is involved in the completion and production of J Dilla’s final project, The Shining. He also works with Madlib on the album High Jazz.

Groups and projects

Riggins is part of The Detroit Experiment, alongside musicians including Amp Fiddler and Marcus Belgrave. He is also associated with the Karriem Riggins Trio, August Greene, The Ray Brown Trio, The Karriem Riggins Virtuoso Experience, Jahari Massamba Unit and GENA.

Recording as a leader

He releases a self-titled album, Music Kaleidoscope, which presents both his jazz background and his work as a hip-hop producer.