Pedrito Martinez Accepts The "Percussionist of The Year" Award

The Jazz Journalists Association proclaimed Pedrito Martinez "Percussionist of The Year" for 2022!

“Pedrito is a genius…working with him has been a revelation to me.”
-- Wynton Marsalis

“The Pedrito Martinez Group is the real thing. They had the club JUMPING! It made me feel like a teenager!" -- Quincy Jones

“The Pedrito Martinez Group is writing a new chapter in Cuban music
history” -- NPR All Things Considered

Pedro Pablo “Pedrito” Martinez was born in Havana, Cuba, Sept 12, 1973 in the Cayo Hueso neighborhood of Old Havana and began his musical career at the age of 11. Since settling in New York City in the fall of 1998, Pedrito has recorded or performed with Wynton Marsalis, Paul Simon, Paquito D’Rivera, Chucho Valdez, Bruce Springsteen, Eddie Palmieri, Dave Matthews, Jackson Browne, Elton John, James Taylor and Sting, and has contributed to well over 100 albums. A consummate master of Afro-Cuban folkloric music and the batá drum he is also the world’s first-call rumbero—playing, singing, and dancing with dozens of Cuban rumba groups and contributing to, or appearing in, several important films, including Calle 54 (2000) and Chico and Rita (2010).

Pedrito was a founding member of the highly successful, Afro-Cuban/Afro-Beat band, Yerba Buena, with which he recorded two albums and toured the world in the mid-to-late 1990s.

Mr. Martinez’s career as a leader began in 2005 with the formation in New York City of the The Pedrito Martinez Group. The group’s first, self-titled, studio album, released October, 2013, was nominated for a Grammy® and was chosen among NPR’s Favorite Albums of 2013 and The Boston Globe Critics Top Ten Albums of 2013.

Habana Dreams, their second album, recorded largely in Cuba, was released in June 10, 2016. Guests included, Ruben Blades, Isaac Delgado, Wynton Marsalis and Angelique Kidjo. In February of 2019, Pedrito and Cuban pianist Alfredo Rodriguez released a duo album called Duologue to critical acclaim. It was selected by NPR for a First Listen. Quincy Jones was Executive Producer.

In July 2019, Pedrito and Eric Clapton recorded a newly arranged version of Clapton’s song "My Father’s Eyes" for a new Pedrito Martinez album called Acertijos (Riddles), released in early 2021. Later, Pedrito and Clapton performed the song together at Clapton’s, Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas, Texas.

On March 12, 2020 at the Beacon Theater in New York City, Pedrito had the honor of performing as special guest with Dave Matthews, Jackson Browne and The Tedeschi Trucks Band, for a benefit concert called Love Rocks NYC. In June of 2020, Pedrito began releasing singles that were recorded for an album, titled Acertijos--starting with "Yo Si Quiero," an original written by Isaac Delgado Jr, Mitchell Delgado and Pedrito and followed by "My Father’s Eyes," a duet with Eric Clapton.

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