Jowee Omicil


Joseph Omicil, Jr, known professionally as Jowee BasH! Omicil, is a Haitian-Canadian jazz musician. He has worked in the past with artists such as Randy Kerber, André 3000, Tony Allen, Jacob Desvarieux, Roy Hargrove, Ibrahim Maalouf, Glen Ballard and Francisco Mela. Born in Montreal, Omicil spends his time between Miami and Paris.
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Early life and education

Jowee Omicil was born to Rose-Annette Innocent and Joseph C. Omicil, a pastor. Omicil's mother passed when he was only 5 years old. Omicil was 15 when his father enrolled him in music school, much to his own surprise. His father's intent was to have him learn an instrument to accompany the church choir. Omicil chose the alto saxophone after being dissuaded from his first choice of piano, which too many students had already chosen. Three years into his studies Omicil was offered a scholarship to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he majored in Music Education. Later on he also attended the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz and was among the 20 finalists featured on BET Jazz.

Career

Over the course of his career Omicil has played with a number of prominent musicians such as Branford Marsalis, Richard Bona, Kenny Garrett, Marcus Miller, Pharoah Sanders, Wyclef Jean, Harold Faustin and André 300 among others. In July 2018 Omicil served as master of ceremonies at a tribute concert celebrating Quincy Jones' 85th birthday at Montreux, Switzerland. Omicil appears in the Damien Chazelle-created Netflix show The Eddy. During the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 Omicil released a solo album, LeKture, and Y Pati, a duet with the American Hollywood pianist Randy Kerber, whom he met on the set of the series The Eddy. Y Pati was released in December 2020. Also, the "Big In Jazz Collective" was born with the release in July 2021 of the Album Global. At the end of 2020 Jowee returned to the studio with brothers Louis and François Moutin. They recorded M.O.M, which was released in September 2021 on Laborie Jazz Records.
In 2023, Omicil released Spiritual Healing: Bwa Kayiman Freedom Suite a free jazz album inspired by an 18th century Vodou ceremony held in the woods of Bois Caïman that helped give rise to the Haitian Revolution.
Later, he released sMiLes, his eleventh album, on 11 November 2025. The album, accompanied by Omicil’s podcast The PoDBasH! over 11 months, features 11 tracks plus a bonus piece and includes a collaboration with Canadian-Haitian vocalist Dominique Fils-Aimé. sMiLes continues Omicil’s exploration of jazz, free improvisation, hip hop, Haitian roots, and, as Gilles Peterson describes, his BasH! Energy Music.

Discography

Soundtrack

Movie