Earth Wind and Fire

Earnie Bailey was mesmerized as a kid, sitting in the front row of an Earth, Wind & Fire concert and seeing all the instruments up close! This experience inspired him to go to the library to learn all he could about guitar building and repair. While in high school Earnie made a guitar in wood shop, which led to requests from his friends to repair their instruments. While working as a repairman for music stores by day, in his off hours Earnie provided his services for free to area rock bands in exchange for concert tickets.

Larry Dunn played a key role in the success of the legendary group Earth, Wind & Fire!  As the keyboardist for the group he added new sounds in the innovative era of electronic musical instruments.  As Musical Director for the group he set high standards of creative and musical performances based on structure and harmony.  As a songwriter, Larry gave the group –and all of us – treasures such as “Shining Star,” “Spirit” and “Jupiter.”  In recent years he formed the Larry Dunn Orchestra and released two CDs, which both feature the songwriting and producing talents of his wife Lu

Lance “KC” Jackson was always the one to fix the instruments in the band growing up. He realized early on the importance of learning a little bit of everything and continuing to educate himself on new programs and gear over the years. This approach to his career led to an impressive list of artists he has worked with such as Rick James, Marvin Gaye, Sheila E, Earth Wind & Fire and so many others! In the early 2000s, along with Bill Reeves, he formed Roadies of Color United in hopes of creating a much-needed community with fellow roadies. Their main goal is to put a spotlight o

Terry (TJ) Jackson served as audio engineer for live events with such artists as Michael Jackson, Earth Wind & Fire, BB King and Anita Baker. TJ befriended the members of Tony! Toni! Toné! early in their career and helped the group with their sound system before they could afford to pay the going rate usually charged by professionals. When their career took off, they were sure to hire TJ to help with sound. Word of mouth spread of TJ's many skills and soon he served as guitar tech on tour with Whitney Houston, which led to his work with Ms. Baker and Michael Jackson.

Ralph Johnson joined Earth, Wind and Fire in 1972. That was an important year for the band as founder Maurice White changed the line-up to include singers Jessica Cleaves and Philip Bailey, keyboardist Larry Dunn, guitarist Roland Bautista and Ronnie Laws on flute and saxophone.  The newly reformed band, which also included Verdine White, became one of the most successful bands in pop history.  Ralph has remained with the band ever since!

June Kuramoto was born in Japan but raised in Southern California, where her passion for traditional Japanese instruments melded with American soul music.

 Ronnie Laws, the younger brother of jazz luminary Hubert Laws (interviewed in 2018), exudes a soulful resonance on the tenor saxophone, yet his musical journey has predominant

Ramsey Lewis had a monster hit record with his jazz version of "The In Crowd." The song, which is considered to be the quintessential instrumental jazz hit of the 60s, led to a series of other recordings including sessions with Earth, Wind & Fire. Ramsey began playing organ and piano in church and fell in love with the feeling of performing for a live audience and making them feel good and dance. In fact, wanting to get people to dance is what inspired Ramsey to cover a popular song with a jazz feel.

Sergio Molho is a seasoned professional in the audio/video and recording industry, boasting a career spanning over four decades. As a named Partner/Director of Business Development for WSDG, a leading global architecture/acoustic design firm, Sergio has been instrumental in the firm's success since founding WSDG Latin America in 1994. With a background as a keyboard artist and vocalist for the popular Argentine funk band CASH, Sergio brings a unique blend of musical talent and technical expertise to his work.

John Paris is a dynamic drummer known for his powerful groove, versatility, and deep understanding of rhythm across multiple genres. As a member of Earth, Wind & Fire, John continues the legacy of one of the most influential bands in music history, delivering performances that blend precision, feel, and high energy on stages around the world. Central to John’s playing is his connection to drum craftsmanship and sound. He places strong emphasis on drum tuning, cymbal selection, and overall kit configuration to achieve the tonal clarity and punch required for both live performan

Neal Pogue has a special touch when it comes to being a recording engineer. Perhaps his talents and skills can be traced back to childhood when he began playing the drums. He was trained at Sound Mastering Recordings in Los Angeles and gained the attention of Randy Jackson who asked Neal to serve as the assistant engineer for the album Randy & the Gypsy’s (1989). Projects with Bobby Brown followed, which led to Neal moving to Atlanta, GA. While there he began his long association with Outkast as well as Goodie Mob and TLC.

Bill Reeves saw a production of Peter Pan as a kid and was fascinated with how the sets changed and how the actors could fly. While majoring in technical theater in college Bill had a summer job at a local casino resort and started working on the traveling shows. This led to working on his first tour which also happened to be his first concert: Earth, Wind and Fire! In the early 2000s, he formed Roadies of Color United with Lance “KC” Jackson in hopes of creating a much-needed community with fellow roadies. Their main goal is to put a spotlight on the fact that people of color can

Doug Sax was the pioneering mastering engineer who helped shape the craft beginning in the late 1960s. Doug was part of the original design team for the famed Mastering Lab in Hollywood California that was established in 1967. Over the years he worked on many award-winning projects and worked closely with designers of new gear such as mixing equipment and studio designs. He worked with such performers as The Who, Pink Floyd, Earth Wind and Fire as well as Peter Frampton and James Taylor. Among his many awards are the AES Lifetime Honorary Membership and a Technical Achievement Gra

Steve Sykes found it easy to answer one of the biggest questions in a NAMM Oral History interview; “Did you have music in your house growing up?”. Steve’s mom was a booking agent in the 1950s which led Steve to early encounters with the likes of Art Blakely, Nina Simone, Jimmy Smith, and Buddy Rich. Finding the ability to teach himself to play the guitar, Steve cut his first recording at the ripe old age of 13. While working predominately in the Jazz genre, Steve has not limited himself to jazz records, diversifying his influences to reggae, R&B, and even working more recently

Shae Usher was just a teenager when she was asked to help Chris Tucker arrange his birthday party. Chris requested that Usher perform (the artist, no relation to Shae) so she called Usher’s manager. His manager at the time was his mother and she and Shae hit it off from the start. In 1996 Shae was hired to join Usher’s crew and has worked with him ever since. As her career progressed she also worked with other artists as stage and later artist manager for Cash Money and Ruff Ryders, Chris Brown among many others.

Verdine White has become a close friend to the NAMM family thanks to his dedication to music education and music advocacy programs around the world.  He has supported the efforts to keep music in public schools and has performed countless events to raise money for such causes.  As the bassist for Earth, Wind & Fire, Verdine brought music to the world that has been an inspiration for music makers young and old.  His contributions to music have been recognized as he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame as well as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Allee Willis wrote a number of successful songs that have become part of the fabric of pop music. Allee either wrote or co-wrote songs such as “September” by Earth Wind & Fire, the theme for the sitcom Friends entitled “I’ll Be there for You,” the Broadway musical The Color Purple, and "Neutron Dance" among many others. She has also been heavily involved with technology and in fact was creating interactive social media experiences on the Internet as early as 1991. As an artist and set designer, Allee has worked with many other performers over the years to create art in many fo