Damon Bryson (born 1978), better known by his stage name Tuba Gooding Jr., is an American

tubist The tuba has been played since the mid-19th century, in the midst of the Romantic music, Romantic period of Western Classical music. Along with classical music, the instrument appears in a variety of jazz styles as well Film music, film and circus ...

and member of the

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

band

The Roots The Roots are an American Hip-hop, hip hop band formed in 1987 by singer Black Thought, Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer Questlove, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''T ...

, joining the band in 2007. He plays the

sousaphone The sousaphone ( ) is a brass musical instrument in the tuba family. Created around 1893 by J.W. Pepper & Son, J. W. Pepper at the direction of American bandleader John Philip Sousa (after whom the instrument was then named), it was design ...

in The Roots in the

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

for ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

''. The

is a low

brass instrument A brass instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by Sympathetic resonance, sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips. The term ''labrosone'', from Latin elements meani ...

mainly used as a

marching band A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who play while marching. Historically they were used in armed forces and many marching bands remain military bands. Others are still associated with military units or emulate a military sty ...

tuba The tuba (; ) is the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece (brass), mouthpiece. It first appeared in th ...

. Bryson was named "one of the top sousaphone players of all time" by ''Brass 'n Wind''. In a 2014 interview, Bryson told reporter Mister Mann Frisby that he named his 37 pound

Onyx Onyx is a typically black-and-white banded variety of agate, a silicate mineral. The bands can also be monochromatic with alternating light and dark bands. ''Sardonyx'' is a variety with red to brown bands alternated with black or white bands. ...

" because of the color.

Early life

Bryson is from

South Philadelphia South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south, and the Schuylkill River to the west."." ''City of Philadelphia''. Retrieved November 8, ...

. He attended

Universal Audenried Charter High School Universal Audenried Charter High School , formerly Charles Y. Audenried High School, is a high school servicing the Grays Ferry area of Philadelphia. The school was originally located at the Charles Y. Audenried Junior High School but was rebuil ...

. Bryson started playing in the band Brass Heaven in his 20s, playing at venues including Warmdaddy's and Chris' Jazz Cafe, in Philadelphia before he was discovered by

Questlove Ahmir K. Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thought ...

and recruited to

in 2007.

Discography

With The Roots

* ''

Rising Down ''Rising Down'' is the eighth studio album by the American hip hop band the Roots, released on April 28, 2008, on Def Jam Recordings. The album's title is adapted from William T. Vollmann's book '' Rising Up and Rising Down: Some Thoughts on Viol ...

'', (2008), Def Jam Recordings * ''

Undun ''Undun'' is the twelfth studio album by American hip hop band the Roots. It was released on December 6, 2011, by Def Jam Recordings. The album was recorded in sessions at several studios in Philadelphia and New York City. Production was handle ...

'' (2011), Def Jam Recordings * ''

Wise Up Ghost ''Wise Up Ghost'' is a collaborative studio album by British singer/songwriter Elvis Costello and American hip hop group the Roots. The album was released on 17 September 2013, by Blue Note Records. The album's first single "Walk Us Uptown" was re ...

'' (2013), Blue Note * '' ...And Then You Shoot Your Cousin'' (2014), Def Jam Recordings

References

{{Reflist The Roots members The Tonight Show Band members American tubists 1978 births Living people