Meet the Artist
Taken by Yuki Chang in 2019
Profile
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Perfect pitch is just one of the many remarkable things about Jezrael Lucero. According to his dad – who passed away in 2003 – the musician was singing Sinatra’s Strangers in the Night at the age of 13 months; he was playing classical concertos on the piano at two; and he’s been gigging at hotels and appearing on TV shows since he was four. As well as being a tremendously gifted jazz pianist, whose fingers can prance like praying mantises or scramble like frenzied locusts on a keyboard, he’s a singer, arranger, drummer, bass-player, and guitarist; One more thing – he has been utterly blind since his premature birth on May 1, 1985.
“Growing up is another thing Lucero has done exceedingly well. He plays more like a 45 year old person, maturity wise,” says friend and mentor Skip Moy, a respected sound engineer and musician. “He also carries a certain charisma when he gets on a bandstand. I’ve worked with some fairly heavy duty artists, globally, and those guys have that charisma you can carry. Stevie Wonder has it, Ray Charles has it… This kid has it.”