Long before Brandon Sanders took command of a drum kit, he was directing traffic on the basketball court.
A former college player at the University of Kansas, Sanders spent his early years pursuing the game before discovering the drums at 25. Decades later, after establishing himself as a first-call New York drummer, he made his recording debut in his 50s with 2023’s critically acclaimed Compton’s Finest. Since then, Sanders has released an album every year, following his debut with 2024’s The Tables Will Turn and 2025’s Lasting Impression.
Now, with The Game Changer, due October 30, 2026, via Savant Records, Sanders draws on the instincts that shaped him as both an athlete and a bandleader: awareness, timing, movement, generosity and an instinct for making everyone around him better.
“Instead of playing jazz in his youth, Sanders played basketball, and one can picture him dribbling the ball with the same springy energy,” wrote Chris Pearson in The Times of London. That energy pulses through The Game Changer, an album that moves with the confidence of a seasoned floor general while embracing the full breadth of Sanders’ musical upbringing.
The title is both a personal statement and an apt description of Sanders’ role in the studio. He sees himself as a musical point guard, someone who controls tempo and pace, creates opportunities and changes the dynamic whenever he enters the game.
“If you look at it from a basketball perspective, who's that guy that you put in the game that makes the difference,” Sanders says. “They change the dynamic musically, get people snapping their fingers, tapping their feet and feeling positive energy. Just put me in play and I'm going to do something to take the music to another level. That’s the game changer.”
To carry out that vision, Sanders assembles a lineup that blends longtime collaborators with fresh voices. Vibraphonist Warren Wolf, a recurring presence throughout Sanders’ discography, returns with the chemistry of a trusted teammate. Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt makes his first appearance on a Sanders album, bringing commanding brass color to the proceedings. Bassist Eric Wheeler, a frequent partner in the rhythm section, locks into the leader’s movement, while saxophonist Stacy Dillard brings his unmistakable energy and a connection that extends beyond music and into Sanders’ basketball world.
Pianist William Hill III represents a younger generation making an immediate impact on jazz, while vocalist Briana Swann appears on two tracks, lending the album a warm, soulful dimension.
Divided evenly between originals and carefully chosen covers, The Game Changer is accessible without sacrificing depth. The opening title track establishes Sanders’ hard-bop credentials while paying tribute to one of his most important influences, Art Blakey.
“If you listen to the instrumentation and the harmony, it'll remind you of The Jazz Messengers,” Sanders explains. “Art Blakey is one of my favorite drummers and I tried to write the melody in tribute to him. You think about tunes like ‘Moanin’,’ and that’s what we’re talking about.”
The Blakey influence returns on “Shrimp and Grits,” a spirited burner named for a menu favorite at Harlem’s Row House. Elsewhere, “Sunsets in Santa Monica” offers a gently swinging, pseudo-samba portrait of the California pier, with a rare Sanders drum solo providing an inviting point of entry.
The album’s originals also reveal Sanders’ deeply personal side. “James Arthur,” a stylish, cobalt-hued swinger spotlighting Wolf, Hill and Wheeler, honors his stepfather. “Pamela the Queen,” a beautifully shaped ballad, pays tribute to his mother. Together, the two pieces give the album an emotional center and mark the first Sanders release to devote such substantial space to his own compositions.
The covers showcase his versatility and his instinctive sense of support. Sanders keeps the fire burning beneath Stacy Dillard’s quartet on Cole Porter’s “What Is This Thing Called Love?” and provides understated propulsion on Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn’s “Isfahan.” On Pelt’s “SMB,” he settles into a lighter, guiding groove beneath the interplay of vibes, saxophone and muted trumpet.
His approach becomes even more tender on the vocal tracks. A beautiful bossa nova treatment of Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars” gives Briana Swann room to glow, while the Isley Brothers classic “Footsteps in the Dark” unfolds with a relaxed slow-jam feel.
That catholic musical sensibility is central to Sanders’ identity. Raised in Los Angeles in a home filled with jazz records and born in Kansas City, where his grandmother ran the jazz club Casablanca, he grew up absorbing music without rigid boundaries. His record collection, like his new album, could move freely from Lee Morgan to James Brown to the Isley Brothers.
“I grew up in the ‘70s when they used to stack records up on top of the pin, one falling and playing after another,” Sanders says. “There would be Lee Morgan, then James Brown, then the Isley Brothers, and on and on. So, this isn’t about what’s jazz or not jazz. It's all just music to me. It's all coming from the African-American tradition. That's just how I see it, how I grew up. I can't help it. That’s me.”
Sanders’ route to the bandstand was unconventional. A walk-on at the University of Kansas, he balanced basketball with his undergraduate studies in communications. When he began drumming at 25, he had no previous experience, but dedication and sincerity quickly made up for lost time. He later attended Berklee College of Music, where he strengthened his musicianship and formed lasting friendships with Wolf and drummer Kendrick Scott.
After moving to New York in 2004, Sanders established himself as a sought-after drummer, performing with artists including Mike LeDonne, Peter Bernstein, Joe Lovano, Jeremy Pelt, Esperanza Spalding, Walter Smith III and Billy Pierce. His recording career arrived later, but it has moved with remarkable momentum.
Lasting Impression earned four-star reviews from Jazzwise, AllMusic and The Times of London, appeared on year-end lists from critics including Bill Milkowski and Phil Freeman, and drew a memorable assessment from DownBeat’s Herb Boyd, who called it “a slam dunk for the former hoopster.” WBGO’s Gary Walker likewise observed that Sanders had made “a Lasting Impression that he’s here to stay!”
With The Game Changer, Sanders continues to turn an unconventional path into a defining musical perspective. His late arrival as a leader has given him the vantage point of a veteran: patient enough to listen, competitive enough to push forward and generous enough to understand that the strongest performance is often the one that lifts the entire team.
Recorded March 9 and April 14, 2026, The Game Changer arrives October 30 on Savant Records. Sanders will celebrate the album with release concerts on November 20 at Jazz Fellowship in Seattle, November 27 at World Stage in Los Angeles and January 16, 2027, at Sista’s Place in Brooklyn, New York.
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