I first met Reggie in Brooklyn sometime in 2003. I was playing a show with pianist Frank LoCrasto, drummer Tommy Crain, and bassist Bob Deboo. My good friend Julio Monterrey — alto saxophonist and fellow Big Bop Nouveau bandmate — brought with him trombonist Reggie Watkins. Reggie was also the musical director of Maynard's band, and would later vouch for me to join the group the following year. That introduction started one of the most important musical friendships of my life.

Steeped in the tradition of jazz, Reggie is one of the most exciting musicians I know. I've learned more from him than I can say. He asked me to perform and contribute two original compositions for his second album, One For Miles, One For Maynard. For his third album, we teamed up again for Avid Admirer — a tribute to the extraordinary trombonist, composer, and arranger Jimmy Knepper, recorded on Knepper's own Bach Stradivarius trombone.

His fourth album as a leader, Rivers, was released on BYNK Records in 2025 — a deeply personal statement rooted in Pittsburgh's jazz scene and the musicians who shaped him. All About Jazz called it "the jazz public's best access to his playing to date." Twenty-plus years in, the friendship keeps producing music worth hearing.