Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
🔥 Grammy-Winning Vocalist Nicole Zuraitis on the dopeYEAH Podcast! 🎤🏆
What does it take to go from a childhood dream of being Whitney Houston to a Grammy Award, with a detour through opera, football, and self-taught piano along the way? 🎸🔥 In this episode, Rob Cass sits down with Nicole Zuraitis, the American jazz vocalist, pianist, composer, and arranger who won the 2024 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album for How Love Begins, one of the most compelling artist journeys in music today.
Nicole traces her story from Waterbury, Connecticut, where she started singing at 11 and trained classically at NYU before a brief run in opera convinced her jazz was where her voice actually belonged. She talks candidly about teaching herself piano, coining her own term (Jazzlore, not folklore), and the sheer disbelief of a night in New York City when she found herself saying, out loud, "Oh my God, we are playing jazz in New York City!" It's one of the great stories behind songs in recent jazz history, and a window into how inspiring artists actually find their sound. 🎶
The road from a 2019 Grammy nomination for her arrangement of Dolly Parton's "Jolene" with drummer Dan Pugach, now her husband, has led to back to back nominations in 2025 and 2026 for Live at Vic's Las Vegas and Little Fears. Nicole also gets real about being a woman in jazz, choosing between music and motherhood, what's genuinely terrifying about AI in the music industry, and why the best musicians she's ever met play weddings and bars, not arenas. 🎤
Funny, honest, and unfiltered, this is one of those musician interviews that goes past the usual industry interviews and into the real stories of musicians building a life in jazz music, capped off with a live improvised song, an acoustic reworking of "I Dare You (Call My Name)," and a surprise duet with Rob on "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay." A must-watch for anyone who follows music history, iconic musicians, or viral music success stories. 🎥✨
If you like musician interviews from Rick Beato and Rick Rubin, you would love this one as well.
👉 CLEARAUDIO
This episode also features a special collaboration with clearaudio — the Celebrity “Al Di Meola” Edition turntable, inspired by his iconic Gibson Les Paul. Limited to 1,000 pieces, it blends high-end German engineering with artistic design and comes with a numbered special release album by Al Di Meola and a guitar pick — a true collector’s item. 🎸
👉 Learn more via the link: bit.ly/4tGGudp
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⏱️ CHAPTERS:
00:00 Waking Up to a Grammy Nomination
06:41 Black American Music Shaped Every Genre in the US
11:30 Jazzlore, Not Folklore
13:53 Winning a Grammy Changed Everything
16:52 I Can't Read Rhythm, I Feel It
19:30 What's Terrifying About AI in the Music Industry
25:52 The Union of Musicians Can Stop Anything
29:16 From Wanting to Be Whitney Houston to Playing Football Instead
34:23 What Makes clearaudio Turntables Exceptional
35:14 My Voice Was Too High for Jazz
38:47 How to Protect Your Voice as a Musician
43:01 Figuring Out How to Play Piano
47:46 The Best Musicians I Ever Met Play Weddings and Bars
51:31 Being a Woman in Jazz Was Rough
55:00 "Oh My God, We're Playing Jazz in New York City!"
58:32 Choosing Between Music and Motherhood
01:05:14 The Pros and Cons of Being a Musician Couple
01:07:06 Humans Are the Most Cruel of All Species
01:12:29 The Best and the Worst Gig
01:15:33 "Oh, You Gotta Get Me Cancelled Over Here"
01:19:27 Nicole Zuraitis' Future Plans
01:20:53 Nicole Improvises a dopeYEAH Talk Song on the Spot
01:23:00 Acoustic Version of 'I Dare You (Call My Name)'
01:28:04 Nicole & Rob's Duet: 'Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay'
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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👍 Like
🔔 Subscribe
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📲 Share
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🔥 Grammy-Winning Vocalist Nicole Zuraitis on the dopeYEAH Podcast! 🎤🏆
What does it take to go from a childhood dream of being Whitney Houston to a Grammy Award, with a detour through opera, football, and self-taught piano along the way? 🎸🔥 In this episode, Rob Cass sits down with Nicole Zuraitis, the American jazz vocalist, pianist, composer, and arranger who won the 2024 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album for How Love Begins, one of the most compelling artist journeys in music today.
Nicole traces her story from Waterbury, Connecticut, where she started singing at 11 and trained classically at NYU before a brief run in opera convinced her jazz was where her voice actually belonged. She talks candidly about teaching herself piano, coining her own term (Jazzlore, not folklore), and the sheer disbelief of a night in New York City when she found herself saying, out loud, "Oh my God, we are playing jazz in New York City!" It's one of the great stories behind songs in recent jazz history, and a window into how inspiring artists actually find their sound. 🎶
The road from a 2019 Grammy nomination for her arrangement of Dolly Parton's "Jolene" with drummer Dan Pugach, now her husband, has led to back to back nominations in 2025 and 2026 for Live at Vic's Las Vegas and Little Fears. Nicole also gets real about being a woman in jazz, choosing between music and motherhood, what's genuinely terrifying about AI in the music industry, and why the best musicians she's ever met play weddings and bars, not arenas. 🎤
Funny, honest, and unfiltered, this is one of those musician interviews that goes past the usual industry interviews and into the real stories of musicians building a life in jazz music, capped off with a live improvised song, an acoustic reworking of "I Dare You (Call My Name)," and a surprise duet with Rob on "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay." A must-watch for anyone who follows music history, iconic musicians, or viral music success stories. 🎥✨
If you like musician interviews from Rick Beato and Rick Rubin, you would love this one as well.
👉 CLEARAUDIO
This episode also features a special collaboration with clearaudio — the Celebrity “Al Di Meola” Edition turntable, inspired by his iconic Gibson Les Paul. Limited to 1,000 pieces, it blends high-end German engineering with artistic design and comes with a numbered special release album by Al Di Meola and a guitar pick — a true collector’s item. 🎸
👉 Learn more via the link: bit.ly/4tGGudp
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
⏱️ CHAPTERS:
00:00 Waking Up to a Grammy Nomination
06:41 Black American Music Shaped Every Genre in the US
11:30 Jazzlore, Not Folklore
13:53 Winning a Grammy Changed Everything
16:52 I Can't Read Rhythm, I Feel It
19:30 What's Terrifying About AI in the Music Industry
25:52 The Union of Musicians Can Stop Anything
29:16 From Wanting to Be Whitney Houston to Playing Football Instead
34:23 What Makes clearaudio Turntables Exceptional
35:14 My Voice Was Too High for Jazz
38:47 How to Protect Your Voice as a Musician
43:01 Figuring Out How to Play Piano
47:46 The Best Musicians I Ever Met Play Weddings and Bars
51:31 Being a Woman in Jazz Was Rough
55:00 "Oh My God, We're Playing Jazz in New York City!"
58:32 Choosing Between Music and Motherhood
01:05:14 The Pros and Cons of Being a Musician Couple
01:07:06 Humans Are the Most Cruel of All Species
01:12:29 The Best and the Worst Gig
01:15:33 "Oh, You Gotta Get Me Cancelled Over Here"
01:19:27 Nicole Zuraitis' Future Plans
01:20:53 Nicole Improvises a dopeYEAH Talk Song on the Spot
01:23:00 Acoustic Version of 'I Dare You (Call My Name)'
01:28:04 Nicole & Rob's Duet: 'Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay'
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
🎧 Don’t forget to:
👍 Like
🔔 Subscribe
💬 Comment
📲 Share
STAY TUNED ON SOCIALS:
instagram.com/dopeyeah.talk
tiktok.com/@dopeyeahtalk?_t=8pWkf42Rm9h&_r=1
facebook.com/profile.php?id=61563840578898
https://x.com/dopeYEAHtalk
