A vocalist and composer, Ruth Naomi Floyd has created a discography dedicated to a sacred jazz expression. She has been at the forefront of creating vocal jazz settings that express theology, history, and justice for over 25 years, leading her multi-faceted ensemble in performances and recordings which consist primarily of original compositions. Blessed with a soaring mezzo-soprano voice, critics praise Ruth’s music for its distinctive sound of progressive ensemble jazz that is seamlessly blended with messages of hope, faith, redemption, and love. Ruth has recorded and performed with such notable instrumentalists as James Newton, James Weidman, Gary Thomas, John Patitucci, Terri Lyne Carrington, George Cables, Bobby Watson, Matthew Parrish, Aaron Graves, Mark Prince, Diane Monroe, Byron Landham, Bryan Carrot, Keith Loftis, Uri Caine, Craig Handy, and many more.
Rooted and grounded in a faith ethos, Ruth has been a presence and worker in areas of the arts and justice throughout her career. She has performed and lectured on the intersection of beauty, theology, justice, history, and the arts in performance centers, academic settings and conferences around the world.
A committed music educator, Ruth is the first African American woman to serve as Founding Director of a University Jazz Studies Program in the United States. She served as Director of Jazz Studies at Cairn University and is an Adjunct Professor at Temple University. In addition, Ruth taught music education (kindergarten – twelfth grades) and ensembles for twenty-one years at The City School.
Ruth was the Community College of Philadelphia Music Department and Spring Garden Records first ever artist-in-residence in 2022-2023.