Derrick Hodge

Derrick Hodge (born July 5, 1979) is a prolific composer, musical director, bandleader, producer bassist, and advocate. To date he has been awarded two Grammys, named a Sundance Composer Fellow, received a Motif Award; one of the world's highest honors for Child Advocacy, and his playing on Common's “BE” has been officially recognized as one of the top 20 basslines in Hip Hop History.

As a performer, Hodge has founded and played in bands and groups as diverse and as influential as R+R=Now, the Robert Glasper Experiment, and The Blue Note All-Stars, as a producer he has collaborated with icons including Quincy Jones, Don Was, and Common, and as Musical Director, he has worked with luminaries including Yasiin Bey, Nas, and notably held the position with Maxwell from 2009 to 2019. Growing up just outside Philadelphia, Hodge’s talent was quickly recognized by the luminaries of the city’s Neo-soul movement, and whilst still in college, he became the bass player and Musical Director of choice for pioneers including Jill Scott, Maxwell, Floetry, Nas, Common, James Posyer and Musiq Soulchild. Simultaneously he was forging a career in jazz circles with the likes of other legendary musicians including Terence Blanchard, Donald Byrd, Mulgrew Miller, and Bootsie Barnes.

In 2014 Hodge became the first Black composer to compose Hip Hop for the National Symphony Orchestra when he acted as Orchestral Arranger and Music Director for the iconic event “20th-anniversary celebration of Illmatic which saw Nas perform the album with the National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Steven Reineke. The event - which was named by FENDER as one of the top moments in Hip Hop history - was also the first time Hip Hop was ever performed by the National Symphony Orchestra and at the Kennedy Center.

Hodge was signed to Blue Note Records after meeting record producer and Blue Note president Don Was in September 2011. On August 6, 2013, his solo album, Live Today, was released with guest appearances by Common ("Live Today"), vocalist Alan Hampton ("Holding Onto You"), Robert Glasper ("Live Today"), Chris Dave, Mark Colenburg, Travis Sayles, Keyon Harrold, and Aaron Parks. He has also worked with Floetry, Osvaldo Golijov, Anthony Hamilton, Gerald Levert, Donnie McClurkin, James Moore, Mos Def, Musiq Soulchild, Q-Tip, Jill Scott, Timbaland, and Kanye West. He has toured and recorded with Clark Terry, Mulgrew Miller, Terell Stafford, and Terence Blanchard.

Hodge was a contributing composer for the musical score of When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts, an HBO documentary produced by Spike Lee, aired in August 2006, as well as choral arranger for the ending credits of Miracle at St. Anna also directed by Lee. He was the sole composer of the score for the documentary film Faubourg Treme: The Untold Story of Black New Orleans directed by Dawn Logsdon, written by Lolis Eric Elie, and released in 2008. Other film credits include music composer for The Recruiter directed by Edet Belzberg, The Black Candle directed by M. K. Asante, Jr., as well as scores for director and playwright David E. Talbert. "Infinite Reflections" was commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and arranged for small brass ensemble.