Alto Saxophone / Saxophone

Immanuel Wilkins

(1998–)

Swarthmore, PA, United States·The Juilliard School

Immanuel Wilkins (b. 1998) — Alto Saxophone, Saxophone. Led Omega, The 7th Hand. Worked with Joel Ross, Jeremy Dutton, Jeremy Corren.

Wilkins debuted on Blue Note at 22. He collaborates with Aaron Parks, Joel Ross, and other forward voices. His alto sound is forceful and his compositions carry social messages alongside the music. Among the youngest generation, he is one of the most closely watched.

Immanuel Wilkins's albums

KingMaker

Joel Ross · 2019

Omega

Immanuel Wilkins · 2020

Joel RossJoel Rossジョエル・ロス and Immanuel WilkinsImmanuel Wilkinsイマニュエル・ウィルキンス both debuted on Blue Note around 2020 — vibraphone and alto saxophone from the same generation. They carry both the openness of the Glasper era and a deep respect for the hard bop tradition. Omega Omega OmegaImmanuel Wilkins · 2020 was named the New York Times's top jazz album of 2020.

— New York Times Jazz Albums of 2020, Giovanni Russonello, 2020

Joel Ross

Immanuel Wilkins's albums

Immanuel Wilkins's videos

February 2026. Immanuel WilkinsImmanuel Wilkinsイマニュエル・ウィルキンス's latest Tiny Desk with his quartet — 'AFTERLIFE RESIDENCE TIME,' 'Fugitive Ritual, Selah,' 'THE BIG COUNTRY.' The same atmosphere as his Vanguard live material.

— NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert, 2026

Videos featuring Immanuel Wilkins

Immanuel Wilkins's videos

2021, recorded during the pandemic. Immanuel WilkinsImmanuel Wilkinsイマニュエル・ウィルキンス's first Tiny Desk (Home) — sounding from a domestic space rather than a stage, which deepens the inwardness of his music.

— NPR Music Tiny Desk (Home) Concert, 2021

Videos featuring Immanuel Wilkins

Immanuel Wilkins's videos

April 2023, Jazz St. Louis. Joel RossJoel Rossジョエル・ロス' Good Vibes featuring Immanuel WilkinsImmanuel Wilkinsイマニュエル・ウィルキンス on alto sax. The next generation in the act of remaking jazz in real time.

— Jazz St. Louis, 2023

Joel Ross

Videos featuring Immanuel Wilkins

Joel RossJoel Rossジョエル・ロス's Good Vibes band gained the gravitational pull of an alto saxophone by installing Immanuel WilkinsImmanuel Wilkinsイマニュエル・ウィルキンス up front. In JazzTimes, Wilkins described Ross as "a composer who rewrites the harmony chorus by chorus."

— Immanuel Wilkins: Omega and the Search for Sanctuary, JazzTimes, 2020

Joel Ross