Remembering Funmi Ononaiye ❤️

This week we lost a true giant— Funmi Ononaiye. He had seemingly endless layers and knowledge, and was omnipresent in the many corners of New York’s vast music scene. A master DJ, percussionist, former A&R executive, chief programmer for Jazz at Lincoln Center, a fixture on the national jazz scene, and forever dedicated to seeking and spreading positive vibrations, Funmi left his mark on so many. Rarely do you come across a human being with such a forcefield of optimism and hope surrounding them. Funmi lived his life connecting people— artists, musicians, thinkers, healers, community leaders, and anyone else who wanted to participate in his world. We became friends in my early days in New York City in 2012. I’ve never seen someone appear at more gigs than Funmi, always there support and encourage musicians. The music truly fueled his soul. If you wanted to know if a band was hitting a groove, all you had to do was watch the way Funmi moved. Funmi cherished time spent documenting in t