This Weekend at the Blue Room — David Watson, She Groove, Sir James Atwood, Tetsuya Nishiyama & Lauren-Ashley
Tetsuya Nishiyama Trio at noon Thursday — Sir James Atwood's debut and David Watson (89 and swinging) Friday — She Groove Saturday — Lauren-Ashley opens Monday's jam.
This Weekend at the Blue Room
June 11–15, 2026
Five shows this week — a lunchtime guitar masterclass, a happy-hour debut, a bebop legend two weeks past his 89th birthday, an all-female trio with a story you won’t forget, and the songbird of Kansas City opening Monday’s jam.
This Week’s Lineup
Thursday, June 11 Jazz @ Noon: Tetsuya Nishiyama Trio — 12 pm (free)
Friday, June 12 Indigo Hour: Sir James Atwood & The Collective — 5:30 pm (free) David Watson — 8:30 pm & 10 pm
Saturday, June 13 She Groove — 8:30 pm & 10 pm
Monday, June 15 Monday Night Jam Session: Lauren-Ashley — 7 pm (free)
Jazz @ Noon: Tetsuya Nishiyama Trio — Thursday, 12 pm
Tetsuya Nishiyama’s journey started with a hand-me-down semi-acoustic guitar in Nagoya, Japan, and ran through Northern Illinois University — where he studied under jazz guitar greats Fareed Haque and Bobby Broom — and Chicago’s storied clubs before landing in the Midwest circuit, where he’s now one of the most called-upon jazz guitarists going. He teaches at KU, anchors organist Mitch Towne’s acclaimed album Refuge, and his sideman list runs from Buddy Guy to Roy Ayers. Blue Room regulars know him from our Monday jams — this Thursday, his trio takes the lunchtime stage.
Free show. Bring your lunch.
Indigo Hour: Sir James Atwood & The Collective — Friday, 5:30 pm
Every artist remembers their first time on the Blue Room stage — and Friday belongs to Sir James Atwood. The Kansas City vocalist, whose voice opened the gala night of ArtFusion KC at the Convention Center, makes his Blue Room debut with his band The Collective: jazz and soul delivered with high-impact, impassioned energy. Debut nights have a special electricity. Be in the room for this one.
Free admission, drink specials. Doors at 5 pm.
David Watson — Friday, 8:30 pm & 10 pm
They call him the Doctor of Bebop. David Watson grew up in a Philadelphia neighborhood John Coltrane once called home, learned to scat from Ella Fitzgerald and Eddie Jefferson records, and spent four years tending bar at the legendary Showboat Jazz Theater — soaking up Miles, Trane, and Monk from behind the rail — before a bassist who’d played with Sonny Rollins told him to stop pouring and start singing. He turned pro at 34, cut his debut album at 61, and recorded Big Town with Dizzy Gillespie’s drummer and Sonny Rollins’ bassist. A few years ago he brought it all home to Kansas City. Now, two weeks past his 89th birthday, he headlines Friday night — living proof that bebop keeps you young.
She Groove — Saturday, 8:30 pm & 10 pm
Leah on vocals, G on guitar, Elisa on bass — She Groove is Kansas City’s all-female trio blending soul, jazz, R&B, and funk, with a repertoire 150 songs deep. And their story is as powerful as their sound: the band came together while two of its members were beating cancer, and their first performance became a celebration of healing and being fully alive. That spirit has fueled every show since. As they put it: “It is never too late to chase your dreams, discover your purpose, or return to something you love.”
Monday Night Jam Session: Lauren-Ashley — Monday, 7 pm
Her family named her “the songbird” long before Kansas City did. Lauren-Ashley — preacher’s kid from St. Louis, rediscovered her voice hosting karaoke nights in KC — went from her first open mic in September 2022 to fronting her own band, playing KC Pride, and performing on FOX 4’s Great Day KC. Monday she opens the jam with soul-soaked R&B, then the bandstand opens to the room. Bring your horn, your voice, or just your ears.
Free admission. Sign up at the door to sit in.
Come See Us
The Blue Room is the American Jazz Museum’s living jazz club — the music never stopped at 18th & Vine.
The Blue Room 1600 E 18th St, Kansas City, MO 64108
Full calendar and tickets: americanjazzmuseum.org/blue-room