LILY RESLINK
Staff Writer
For Troy Andrews, music has been the sound guiding his life from tragedy to joy.
The multi-instrumentalist — known as Trombone Shorty — rose from the music that defines his city of New Orleans. Now, music is how he uplifts others and shares the culture of arts that uplifted him.
Andrews cited his family and city as two of his greatest inspirations, saying on the Trombone Shorty Foundation website, “They didn’t just introduce me to the greats, they were the greats. From my grandfather, Jessie Hill, who made R&B hits back in the day, to my cousin Herlin Riley, who played drums for Wynton Marsalis, my family gave me the inspiration and the tools to make New Orleans music.”
Founded by Andrews, the organization brings children in New Orleans the space, tools and resources needed to pursue their passion for music. On the foundation’s website, Andrews spoke on the relationship between music and his hometown and how that very relationship drives his artistry.
His touring band Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, which emerged in the 2010s, brings their “Let’s Go Get ‘Em Tour” to Chautauqua at 8 p.m. tonight in the Amphitheater.
A feature in Garden & Gun pointed out that when Andrews started playing, he was half the trombone’s height — hence his “Trombone Shorty” stage name.
The foundation website explained how many kids in New Orleans already play instruments.
“The foundation is just about inspiring the next generation and letting them know that … through music, it could be your passport to do whatever you want to do,” he said in a 2023 interview with CBS News.
Andrews started the Foundation in 2011 to fund resources and mentorship for those students passionate about pursuing music further. He recognized firsthand these opportunities are rare but extremely meaningful.
“I realized after (Hurricane) Katrina that the way that I grew up in a musical neighborhood will no longer exist,” Andrews said in the interview with CBS News. “And so I wanted to be able to reach kids citywide that don’t have that experience that I had growing up in Tremé and give them the opportunity to learn from some of the best New Orleans musicians.”
One could argue that Andrews’ musician career began at age four when he took the stage during the 1990 New Orleans’ Jazz & Heritage Festival. His playing caught the attention of Bo Diddley and earned him an impromptu invitation to perform alongside the artist.
Many pivotal moments in music took place for him at a young age. “When we were 11, we were playing in Jackson Square, and I remember the police coming under the Cabildo and they … said that we were playing too loud. And they … took us downtown to jail,” Andrews said in the CBS interview. He said the community protested. “Because of that moment, the kids and people who want to play on the street are still able to do that because of what we did.”
In 1995, Andrews’ brother Darnell, also a musician, was shot and killed. Andrews was placed in the care of Susan Lovejoy Scott as a parental and professional mentor. She arranged the young music prodigy’s earliest auditions.
In his 2025 appearance on “The View” with Whoopi Goldberg, he spoke about how older artists mentored him and the foundation allows him to continue the same cycle for youth in New Orleans — something that shapes the culture of musicians in the area.
With music as a cornerstone of both his nature and nurture, Andrews followed an upward climb to a Grammy Award-winning career, performances across the globe and frequent appearances on programs of household notoriety.
Andrews performed at Chautauqua in 2021 and 2023, collaborating with different musicians each time. Today will be his band’s first single-bill performance at Chautauqua.
Andrews has found meaning and rhythm across genres: R&B, rock, soul, funk, hip-hop and New Orleans street jazz. His passion for the art shows no signs of wavering.
“I’m always practicing,” he said in the CBS interview. “I’m always trying to get better. And it doesn’t matter, we go out there and play in front of 5,000 people or wherever it may be, or 200 people. I always play as if these people don’t know who I am.”
