Live Performance
▶ Watch live performance ↗Piano, vocals and live performance.
Open on Instagram ↗Music, performances,
& other projects.
“I am a Grammy Award-winning songwriter, composer, producer, music director, arranger and performer working across commercial music. My work spans recordings, film and live productions, with R&B and soul among my musical strengths.”
~Dr. Andráe Alexander
▶ Watch live performance ↗String Session
▶ Watch string session ↗String arrangement for a song co-written with Autumn Rowe. Studio-session reel, shared January 19, 2024.
Open on Instagram ↗R&B and soul are home for me. Whether I am writing, at the piano, or performing with a band, I want the music to give people a reason to listen and something to carry with them.
Music for the project you are making.
Composition & arrangements
Music arrangements for the 2016 production of Recorded in Hollywood, the musical about John Dolphin, at the Kirk Douglas Theatre. Arrangements credited alongside Kevin Toney.
Discuss Composing and Arranging ↗Arranging
String and orchestral arrangements for recording artists and live productions. Selected work includes string arrangements for blackbear at Coachella 2018 and the studio-string session above.
Explore the career timeline ↗blackbear photo: Jillianwilsonmbn / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Original file; displayed at a smaller size.Songwriting & production
Songwriting on FREEDOM from Jon Batiste’s We Are; composition, lyrics and production on My Own Thang from Empire. Each credit identifies my actual contribution.
Selected recording credits ↗Music direction
Music direction for artist performances and collaborative shows, including longtime work as Allee Willis’s music director.
Discuss music direction ↗Performance
Piano, vocals and live music. Share the setting, audience, musical brief and dates so we can discuss the format that fits.
Discuss a performance ↗Start listening
A SELECTION FROM THE RECORDINGS
Other recording credits
We Are
Jon Batiste
Songwriting on FREEDOM
This Christmas Day
Jessie J
Background vocals on selected tracks
Identified
Vanessa Hudgens
Piano on Last Night
More Issues Than Vogue
K. Michelle
Songwriting on All I Got
The Birth of a Nation
Meek Mill · Pusha T · Priscilla Renea
Composition on Black Moses
Detroit
The Roots · Bilal
Recording contribution; film vocal consulting
More recording credits
The Love & War MasterPeace
Raheem DeVaughn
Composition & piano on Super Hero
Playing for Keeps
Keith Sweat · Candace Price
Songwriting on Boomerang
Additional recording work includes projects involving Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins and REGINA MADRE (Rebecca King-Crews).
ON SCREEN & BEHIND THE MUSIC
Film, television & music videos
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Performed with artists on the show.
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
Performed with artists on the show.
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Performed with artists on the show.
TODAY
Performed with artists on the show.
BET Presents
Performed with artists on the show.
Empire
Composition, lyrics and production on My Own Thang. Aired on FOX.
Black Monday
Trumpet-player appearance in the series starring Don Cheadle (2021).
Big Screens
Piano performance in the GLC music video featuring Kanye West.
Swae Lee
Piano consulting for his Christmas single’s video (2018).
Detroit
Vocal consulting for the film; recording work on the soundtrack.
The Birth of a Nation
Music on the inspired-by album, including Black Moses and Queen.
The World According to Allee Willis
Featured participant and longtime musical collaborator in the 2024 documentary.
Selected television performances include appearances from around 2007–2008. This is a selection of screen and video work.
Stage & project credits
blackbear · Coachella 2018
String arrangements for blackbear at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, California.
Allee Willis & The D
Co-writer and musical collaborator on The D, and Allee Willis’s longtime music director. The Detroit project brought together artists, community voices and recordings across the city.
Shared project participants include Verdine White, Mary Wilson, Martha Reeves, Lamont Dozier, Lily Tomlin, Ray Parker Jr., and more.
82nd Airborne Division All-American Chorus
Arrangements for Freedom and I Am Here in 2023. The ensemble performed on America’s Got Talent, aired on NBC.
U.S. Army arranging project.
Recorded in Hollywood
Music arrangements for the updated 2016 production of the musical about John Dolphin. Arrangements credited alongside Kevin Toney.
Amazing Grace Conservatory
Musical director at Wendy Raquel Robinson’s Los Angeles conservatory for approximately seven years.
Military music & recording
United States Navy Band, Washington, D.C.
Pianist, keyboardist and vocalist, 2003–2007.
United States Marine Corps
Pianist, Quantico Marine Corps Band, 1999–2003.
The Salvation Army
Piano on two recording projects in Silver Spring, Maryland, in 2006 and 2007.
Selected artists & collaborators
- Jon Batiste
- Ne-Yo
- K. Michelle
- Jessie J
- Vanessa Hudgens
- Keith Sweat
- Common
- Estelle
- Meek Mill
- Pusha T
- Priscilla Renea (Muni Long)
- Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins
- Swae Lee
- Omer Fedi
- Raheem DeVaughn
- Allee Willis
The D project participants include:
- Verdine White
- Mary Wilson
- Martha Reeves
- Lamont Dozier
- Lily Tomlin
- Ray Parker Jr.
- Freda Payne
- Narada Michael Walden
And more artists and community voices.
Further performance work includes Patti LaBelle, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and Johnny Gill.
The D project participants
Selected participants in The D, co-written and musically developed with Allee Willis, alongside many more artists and community voices. These shared project credits do not imply a separate session with each artist.
- Martha Reeves
- John Sinclair
- Lily Tomlin
- Freda Payne
- Scherrie Payne
- Joyce and Pam Vincent
- Angela V. Shelton
- Marcella Detroit
- Diane Steinberg-Lewis
- Reggie McBride
- Brandon Victor Dixon
- Ray Parker Jr.
- Bruce Miller
- William “Mickey” Stevenson
- Narada Michael Walden
- Maejor
- Mayer Hawthorne
- Telma Hopkins
- Wayne Kramer
- Greg Phillinganes
- Mary Wilson
- Lamont Dozier
- Leon Ware
- Verdine White
Selected venues & recording locations
A selection from my performance and recording history; not an exhaustive list.
- Kennedy Center
- DAR Constitution Hall
- Blue Note, New York
- Cotton Club, Japan
- Motown Museum / Hitsville U.S.A. — The D recording
- Detroit Institute of Arts — The D events
- Michigan Opera Theatre — The D project
- Fisher Theatre / Fisher Building — The D project location
- Masonic Temple, Detroit — The D filming location
- City Theatre, Detroit
Writing, performance & collaborations
Andráe has worked with major-label artists across video projects, songwriting, studio collaborations, and consulting. His work includes projects with Ne-Yo, Jon Batiste, K. Michelle, Estelle, Common, Meek Mill, Pusha-T, and more, as well as Fox’s Empire.
Discuss Your Project ↗Current projects
ORCHESTRAL MUSIC · PERFORMANCE · DOCUMENTARY
Libations for the Unknown
Libations for the Unknown is an original multimedia project featuring an eight-movement full orchestral composition with choir, rhythm section, choreography, and multimedia elements, accompanied by a documentary. The project explores Black American musical influence, recognition, ownership, and compensation. In development.
Selected credits · Music & performance materials · Projects · Contact