Oakland-reared Kev Choice is a renaissance man with hip hop and jazz running through his veins. Committed to creating hip hop that uplifts, informs and inspires, he’s a leading force on the Bay Area scene with four critically hailed solo albums and various ambitious compositions, like 2017’s Oakland Symphony-commissioned orchestral work “Soul Restoration Suite.” The pianist, MC, composer, producer, educator and bandleader has toured and recorded with Michael Franti and Spearhead, Lyrics Born, Too $hort, Ledisi and fellow Skyline High grad Goapele. In 2007, Lauryn Hill recruited him as music director, and he spent 18 months touring internationally with her. More recently he’s collaborated with The Coup, Dwele, Martin Luther, and Amel Larrieux. And lately he’s been focusing on the Kev Choice Ensemble, his jazz-hip-hop-funk big band that draws on a vast continuum of black music.