Jamie Ousley

JAMIE OUSLEY has been one of the most in-demand bassists in south Florida since he moved to Miami in the fall of 1998 from his native home of Tennessee. After earning his doctorate from the University of Miami in 2008, he is now Assistant Professor of Jazz Bass at Florida International University and continues to teach and perform world-wide.

Over the past decade, Jamie has become a familiar figure on the south Florida jazz scene both as a leader and accompanist. The Miami Herald proclaims: “his tone and dexterity are prized by area jazz royalty and his sensitivity and creativity as an accompanist sought by vocalists from Miami to West Palm Beach.” Gold Coast & Boca Life magazines named him the 2011 South Florida Jazz Musician of the Year. Jamie can regularly be found backing up some of the greatest world-class “local” musicians including Ira Sullivan, SAMM, Wendy Pedersen and Nicole Henry. Jamie has also been privileged to perform with many jazz legends such as George Sheering, James Moody, Benny Golson and Eddie Higgins, to name a few.

Photo Credit: Jacek Andrzej Gancarz

Jamie has released three CDs on the TIE Records jazz label. His most recent recording, A Sea of Voices, reached #8 on the national JazzWeek radio charts and continues to earn international praise with accolades such as “Brilliant…Shines…Invigorating…Heartening…Revitalizing…Inspiring.” His second CD, Back Home, features many south Florida artists (including Ira Sullivan, SAMM, LeNard Rutledge, and Nanami Morikawa) and was named “South Florida Jazz CD of the Year” by the Palm Beach Post. His first CD, O Sorriso Dela (meaning “her smile” in Portuguese), was recorded in 2007 in Osaka, Japan with pianist Phillip Strange and drummer Larry Marshall.

Jamie has presented clinics around the world at many prestigious universities and schools with subjects ranging from bass and rhythm section techniques to jazz improvisation. Highlights include presenting clinics at the following schools: the University of Mainz in Germany, the University of Costa Rica, the National University of Costa Rica, the Jazz in Situ Festival Clinic in Quito, Ecuador, the Azul Jazz School in Osaka Japan, the University of Miami, the University of Florida, Florida International University and the New World School of the Arts for the Thelonious Monk Institute.