River Eckert Band

River Eckert (b. October 9, 2009) is a 16-year-old pianist and vocalist born and raised inNew Orleans, Louisiana. From a very young age, River has been surrounded by music.Immersed in the styles of legends such as Professor Longhair, James Booker, Dr. John,Allen Toussaint, Fats Domino, and Art Neville, among others, he is passionate aboutand dedicated to carrying the torch of the New Orleans piano tradition.Coming from a musical family, River began playing piano at the age of three. Initiallystudying classical music, his teachers eventually encouraged him to explore blues andjazz, recognizing his natural ability to quickly grasp those styles. Today, River sings andplays in both solo piano and full-band settings, rapidly gaining local, national, andinternational popularity. River recently completed his debut studio album, which wasreleased in April 2026. Collaborators on this project include George Porter Jr., IvanNeville, Terence Higgins, Cornell Williams, Raymond Weber, John Fohl, and others. Hisdebut single, Pass That Torch (feat. Ivan Neville), was released in October 2024,followed by his second single, Hey Hey Hey (Fi Nah Nay) in February 2025, and athird, Painting Pictures, in April 2025. He has also been featured in several Playing forChange video recordings and has been involved in helping score a documentary filmabout New Orleans. Recently, River and Troy Trombone Shorty Andrews performedtogether as a duo for the inauguration of New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno. Furthercementing his rising acclaim, River was recently honored with the Emerging ArtistAward from the High Sierra Foundation at the High Sierra Music Festival 2026. Riverslive performance schedule remains full, and he has just confirmed his first performancesin Europe for the summer of 2026.Despite his youth, River has already had the privilege to perform and record with anextraordinary roster of notable artists, including Taj Mahal, Trombone Shorty, OteilBurbridge, George Porter Jr., Cyril Neville, Irma Thomas, Ivan Neville, Stanton Moore,Pedrito Martnez, Eric Krasno, Taylor and Griffin Goldsmith (Dawes), Anders Osborne,Luther Dickinson, Cory Henry, Nikki Glaspie, Fred Wesley, Big Chief Donald HarrisonJr., The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Adam Deitch, Raymond Weber, Terence Higgins, TonyHall, Jennifer Hartswick, Big Sam Williams, Craig Robinson, and Bill Murray.Additionally, he has performed at many prestigious venues and events, including theNew Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Jam Cruise, French Quarter Festival, HighSierra Music Festival, NOLA Funk Festival, Hogs for the Cause, WWOZ Piano Night,Park City Song Summit, Brooklyn Bowl, Tipitinas, Maple Leaf Bar, Garcias Chicago,Saenger Theatre, Orpheum Theater, Civic Theater, Joy Theater, and House of Blues, aswell as media appearances on the WWL Morning Show, WWOZ Radio, and Fox 8News.