Gabe Durand

Biography

Within the footprints of Thundercat, Jimi Hendrix, Ghost Note, Mononeon, Prince…

Singer and multi-instrumentalist, with a predilection for bass, Gabe Bridgewater, comes from an artistic and musically inclined family. Born of a French father and an American mother in Paris, his family is a microcosm, to say the least – his mother is, none other than, the revered vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, and his half-sister the singer China Moses. 

After acquiring a taste for music at an early age, Gabe quickly began to follow his own path. At only 28, he has already solidified his status as a seasoned musician, appearing on stages, worldwide. He has played with The Roots at the Highline Ballroom, has opened for The Brand New Heavies, Theo Croker, George Benson, China Moses and Roy Ayers. Gabe has also played with John Blackwell (Prince, Justin Timberlake) , Lenny Stallworth (RH Factor, PFunk), Theo Croker (J.Cole, John Legend), Kassa Overall, Yahzarah (Erykah Badu, Lenny Kravitz, Madonna), China Moses, Dee Dee Bridgewater, The Roots, Ghost Note (Robert “Sput” Searight), Benjamin Siksou, Alissia (Benveniste), Sean Wright, Joe Cleveland, Josiah Woodson, Chérif Soumano, Fatoumata Diawara and, Bassekou Kouyate (N’Goni Ba). Lastly, he has also been involved with French multidisciplinary artist, Benjamin Biolay and the esteemed (French) hip-hop producer Dany Synthé.

Despite having toured for more than ten years as a guitarist, a change manifested itself. Suddenly, he fell in love with the bass. It did not take long before he gravitated to the lower register of the five strings. Immersed in a rich musical culture and surrounded by childhood friends in the same field, Gabe is constantly pushing his limits as a musician and creative.

After his time at Berklee College of Music (Boston) and a couple of years in the New York City and Brooklyn area -he is now residing in Paris, France, at the head of ZinQ as leader, bassist, composer, rapper and vocalist. This project aims to marry and transcend all of the musical influences he has encountered throughout his life. From James Brown, Prince to Jimi Hendrix, George Duke to J Dilla, Robert Glasper, Bilal, D’Angelo with a pepper of Anderson  .Paak, Thundercat and Kendrick Lamar… 

Gabe recently performed at the legendary French jazz festival « Jazz In Marciac » with his project, ZinQ (hence, the nickname). ZinQ has two singles, which are available on all major streaming services! The songs are entitled « Ready? » and, the other, « Do Right Man ». The first one is an ode to the purple one, Prince Rogers Nelson while the other selves into a more authentic and personal part of Gabe. An album is set to be released in the very near future!

Smart links for Singles

Ready? :

Do Right Man: