The World-Famous Cotton Club in Harlem, NYC Launches an Opening Show on Saturday May 14, 2022
American Songbook Entertainer Elijah Rock Dubbed
“A New Face and Brand Ambassador of the Re-Launching of the World-Famous Cotton Club”
The World-Famous Cotton Club, Harlem’s legendary nightclub where the well-heeled dined, danced and swung the night away to the likes of Duke Ellington, Lena Horne and Cab Calloway, is returning in grand style this spring on May 14th, 2022 for two shows at 8pm and 10pm. Where the original club in its 1920s-1930s heyday was located on 142nd Street & Lenox Ave., the present location sits on 125th Street. And when this new launch opens, the headliner will be all-around entertainer Elijah Rock, a singing and dancing firestorm who has long made his mission clear of keeping the proud traditions and legacies of the music not just alive…but vibrant.
“The opportunity to open and headline at The Cotton Club – the historical space where so many of my greatest inspirations graced the stage – is a dream come true,” Rock states. “It’s also a homecoming. I lived on 127th & Morningside for 10 years mere blocks way!
Assessing his gifts, one major outlet praised Rock thusly, “IT TAKES A CERTAIN KIND OF ARTIST THESE DAYS TO CARRY ON THE TORCH PASSED ON FROM THE LIKES OF NAT “KING” COLE, FREDDIE COLE, BILLY ECKSTINE AND JOE WILLIAMS.” -JAZZ WEEKLY
A torch-bearing interpreter of The Great American Songbook, Elijah Rock has been making his mark as an entertainer based in Las Vegas where he headlines top showrooms, starred as the lead vocalist in Vegas! The Show at Planet Hollywood, and released his acclaimed albums Gershwin For My Soul and the recent, Matters of The Heart.” “Winner of an NAACP Theater Award for his lead in “Breath and Imagination: The Story of Roland Hayes,” Rock also portrayed Cotton Club legend Cab Calloway in the musical “I Only Have Eyes For You,” earning an Ovation Award nomination.
“Harlem will love this plush and stylish opening of The Cotton Club,” Elijah enthuses. “When I headline this grand black tie/red carpet event, I will be backed by a 12-piece band led by Brooklyn’s own highly respected reed man Lou Caputo (Bobby Short, Lou Rawls, The Temptations, Bobby Sanabria) and reflective of my generation – a group of mixed gender* and mixed race younger and older players.
I’ll be singing repertoire from my extensive big band book and, of course, I will have a Duke Ellington medley. It’s going to be Uptown New York… with a splash of my spin on Las Vegas.”