Rick Braun

Although he started out as a drummer in high school, trumpeter Rick Braun joined his brother in the brass section and from there has never looked back. Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania (6 July 1955), his career began with an album release in Japan as a pop singer. From there he started working as a songwriter for music publishing giant Warner Chappell where he penned "Here with Me" which was a top 20 hit for REO Speedwagon in the late 1980s. After returning to his first love, the trumpet, Rick Braun's talents as a player soon landed him jobs with some of the world's biggest live acts and soon he was touring with artists such as Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Tom Petty and Crowded House. In between his work as a top session player, Rick Braun was building a solo career and after recording four well-received albums, he finally had the confidence to leave the session work behind and concentrate on his own material full time. He has released a number of chart topping jazz albums and is also one third of the jazz combo BWB (Braun-Whalum-Brown) alongside guitarist Norman Brown and sax player Norman White. Notable solo releases include Beat Street (1995), Full Circle (1998), Kisses in the Rain (2001), All It Takes (2009), and Can You Feel It (2014). He later recorded the albums Around the Horn (2017) and Crossroads (2019). In 2026, he paid tribute to the late Chuck Mangione with Rick Braun Plays Chuck Mangione.