Los Angeles-based trumpeter and composer Josef Leimberg arrived during the early '90s as a member of rap group Mad Kap, after which he shifted into session gigs for the likes of Freestyle Fellowship and Snoop Dogg. Leimberg's exposure increased toward the end of the 2000s and into the 2010s with bold additions to albums by Erykah Badu, Sa-Ra, and Robin Thicke. Leimberg later co-wrote, co-produced, and appeared on two of the deeper highlights on Kendrick Lamar's Grammy-winning To Pimp a Butterfly. He then gathered associates such as Terrace Martin, Kamasi Washington, and Bilal, and recorded Astral Progressions -- a progressive fusion of spiritual/cosmic jazz, soul, and hip-hop released in 2016. ~ Andy Kellman