Nathaniel Kearney Jr. is a Christian man and dedicated
bassist.
He believes in having a strong work ethic, perfecting his sound, and doing
whatever’s needed for each situation and artist.
A native of Halifax, NC, a small town, he grew up listening
to Gospel music. Initially, he listened to mostly quartet groups…The
Mighty Clouds Of Joy, The Gospel Keynotes, The Pilgrim Jubilees, The Williams
Brothers, & The Canton Spirituals are some of his favorites. At a
young age, he developed a love for drums and began playing drums for churches
and quartet groups in the area. A few years later, he learned how to play
bass. Little did he know that skill would take him all over the world.
As time went on he began listening to all genres of
music. Soon, artists such as Bonnie Raitt, Luther Vandross, Tom Petty
& The Heartbreakers, The Temptations, The Gap Band, Paul Young, Michael
Jackson, New Edition, Garth Brooks, Roger Troutman, Shania Twain, Stevie
Wonder, & Aerosmith became favorites of his.
After honing his craft and deciding to pursue a career in music, Nate began
playing for artists such as Karen Clark Sheard, Maurette Brown Clark, and
Valerie Boyd when they performed close by. In 2005, he got a phone call
that would change his life. He was called to play for Kurt Carr & The
Kurt Carr singers during a Gospel event at the King’s Dominion theme
park. Kurt was so impressed with his playing that he asked Nate to play
bass for the One Church Tour where he was the headlining artist. Nate
accepted and joined the house band for the tour allowing him to play for Smokie
Norful, Vashawn Mitchell, James Fortune & FIYA, Rizen, and Vicki
Yohe. At the end of the tour, Kurt asked Nate to be the full time bassist
for him. As if things couldn’t get better, a few weeks later, Nate was
asked by Smokie Norful to play for him for a performance on the CBS Saturday
Morning Show.
From 2005 to 2009, Nate traveled all over the world with Kurt
Carr. He performed in England, Africa, Japan, Amsterdam, and
Germany. He was in the movie and played on the soundtrack of Sony
Pictures film “First Sunday”. Nate also had the opportunity to perform at
The White House for President Bush during the Black Music Month Celebration.
In 2009, another life changing decision was made. Nate
decided to move to Los Angeles. This has proven to be one of the best
moves he’s made. Since his move, he’s had the opportunity to play for
Chuck Loeb, Avant, Taio Cruz, Dave Koz, and a host of other artists. He’s
appeared on Ellen (NBC), The Monique Show (BET), and Lopez Tonight (TBS).
More extensive traveling came along with the move. This allowed Nate to
perform in South Africa and several times in Indonesia.
Currently, Nate is the bassist for Grammy nominated Smooth
Jazz superstar Dave Koz.
During his 9 year professional career, Nate’s had the
opportunity to perform and record with a Who’s Who of Gospel and Secular
artists. These artists include…
GRAMMY & STELLAR winners Mary Mary, Smokie Norful, Karen
Clark-Sheard, & Dorinda Clark-Cole
MULTI PLATINUM selling R&B and Pop artists Taio Cruz,
Avant, Kelly Price and JODECI
…as well as
Chuck
Loeb
Jonathan Butler
Eric Darius
Tramaine Hawkins
Kurt Carr & The Kurt Carr Singers
Maurette Brown-Clark
J. Moss
Vashawn Mitchell
James Fortune & FIYA
Bishop T.D. Jakes
Martha Munizzi
Marvin Sapp
Vicki Yohe
Bishop Paul Morton
Rizen
The Anointed Pace Sisters
David Peaston
Maysa Leak
Paulis Sanchez
Valerie Boyd
Bernard Harris
Ami Rushes
Malcolm Jamal Warner & Miles Long
Boney James
Tom Braxton
Larry Braggs
Lalah Hathaway
Rahsaan Patterson
Brian Simpson
Phil Perry
Ricky Peterson
Steve Cole
Jackiem Joyner
Sheila E
David Benoit
Keiko Matsui
Javier Colon
Oleta Adams
Kenny Lattimore
Jeffrey Osborne
Patches Stewart
Marion Meadows
Gerald Albright
Brian Culbertson
Mindi Abair
Richard Elliot