Born and raised in Oakland, California, Amina Scott started on piano lessons from her grandmother, picked up the electric bass at twelve, and was soon gigging with local bands. She relocated to New Orleans in 2012, studied at Loyola University New Orleans, and earned her master's in jazz studies from Florida State University in 2019 under Rodney Jordan. In 2017 she joined the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra led by Adonis Rose, touring festivals from Jazz Fest to Detroit and Ascona, Switzerland.
As a sideman she has performed with Jazzmeia Horn, Chief Xian Atunde Adjuah, Don Vappie, David Murray, Johnny Vidacovich, Nicholas Payton, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Randy Brecker, and Herlin Riley. She serves on the faculty at Loyola University New Orleans and the University of New Orleans, and has taught at the Lafayette Summer Music Workshop since 2022.
Her debut album as a leader, 'Where the Wild Seed Grows' — released May 5, 2024, and produced with Shirazette Tinnin — draws inspiration from pioneering novelist Octavia Butler and her family's Southern roots. DACAMERA calls her 'an exceptionally talented New Orleans-based bass player'; OffBeat says 'the sky's the limit for Amina Scott.'
Nuanced and innovative compositions…the sky's the limit for Amina Scott.
OffBeat Magazine
