Deon Yates grew up on the East Side of Detroit where he was introduced to jazz by teachers Donald Washington and Hosea Taylor. Deon quickly became an accomplished woodwind player proficient in both jazz and classical music. One of the first gigs Deon landed was with Jazz Drummer Leonard King (James Carter Organ Trio), at the age of 16, along with band mates Regina Carter: Violinand Rodney Whitaker: Bass. Deon was nominated for an Emmy Award for original music he produced for a PBS Television program in 2001, and has performed as a special guest on concerts with Rick Braun, Richard Elliot, Alexander Zonjic, Rodney Whitaker, James Carter, Roy Brooks, Marcus Belgrave, Kem, Dwele, Gerald Veasley, Clarence Carter, Kirk Whalum, The Floaters and The Contours . With the “DYJII”I, Deon brings you traditional jazz style with a contemporary twist.
“SPOTLIGHT”, an outstanding new project from World-class Detroit saxophonist Deon Yates delivers big-time on talent and performance. Deon’s playing sparkles like a new diamond on 10 compelling songs. He brings in guests Nick Colionne, Maysa, and fellow Detroiter Lin Rountree to compliment his own impressive jazz chops. This is a well rounded selection of original tracks ranging from soothing/romantic to lively/exhilarating. When you listen to Colionne’s work on the energetic, “Use to Be,” Maysa’s alluring vocals on “Look How Far We’ve Come,” and Rountree’s delicious trumpet work on the brand new single,“Resaxation,” you’ll hear why Emmy-nominated Deon Yates is fast becoming one of the most sought-after emerging talents in jazz today. As a performer and a composer/producer. you’ll definitely want to brighten up your listening pleasure by owning ”SPOTLIGHT! ~SCOTT O’BRIEN”
His current CD “Spotlight” is available on cdbaby.com, iTunes and Amazon.com featuring chart topping Smooth Jazz guitarist Nick Colionne, vocalist Maysa Leak (Incognito), and Detroit “Soul Trumpeter” Lin Rountree. Be sure to look for Deon around town and abroad.
Deon has been recognized as an affluent instrumentalist and performer by some of the top music manufacturers in the country with endorsements from industry leaders Sax Dakota U.S.A., Theo Wanne (Mouthpieces) and AMT Microphones Deon has proven himself to be a world class artist.
Deon says: “My Dakota Saxes have helped bring my sound to “another higher level of excellence.”
Deon exclusively plays Dakota Sax models: SDT-1200 TENOR, SDA-1000 ALTO and SDSC-909 his custom made Silver plated Curve Soprano.
