River Eckert

River Eckert (b. Oct. 9, 2009) is a 16-year-old piano player born and raised in New Orleans, LA. From a very young age, River has been surrounded by music. Immersed in the styles of legends such as Professor Longhair, James Booker, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, Fats Domino, Art Neville among others, he is passionate and dedicated to “carrying the torch” of the New Orleans piano tradition.

Coming from a musical family, River began playing piano at the age of 3. Initially studying classical music, his teachers eventually encouraged him to explore blues and jazz, recognizing his natural ability to quickly grasp those styles. Now, at just 15-years-old, River sings and plays in both a solo piano and full band setting. He is rapidly gaining local and national popularity and has recently started recording his first studio album. Collaborators on this project include George Porter Jr., Ivan Neville, Terence Higgins, Cornell Williams, Raymond Weber, John Fohl, and others. His debut single, Pass That Torch, was released in October 2024, followed by his second single, Hey Hey Hey (Fi Nah Nay), in February 2025 and third, Painting Pictures, in April 2025. The full album is expected in late 2025. River was also recently featured in several Playing for Change video recordings and is involved in helping score a documentary film about New Orleans.

River has had the privilege to perform and/or record with notable artists such as Cory Henry (Snarky Puppy), George Porter Jr. (The Meters), Cyril Neville (The Neville Brothers/ The Meters), Irma Thomas, Ivan Neville (The Neville Brothers/Dumpstaphunk), Stanton Moore (Galactic), Eric Krasno (Soulive/Lettuce), Anders Osborne, Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars), Nikki Glaspie (Dumpstaphunk/Snarky Puppy), Fred Wesley (The J.B.’s), Big Chief Donald Harrison Jr. (The Jazz Messengers/The Headhunters), Adam Deitch (Lettuce), Raymond Weber (Harry Connick Jr./Dumpstaphunk), Terence Higgins (Warren Haynes), Tony Hall (Harry Connick Jr./The Neville Brothers/Dumpstaphunk), Cornell Williams (Jon Cleary), Roger Lewis (Dirty Dozen Brass Band), Kirk Joseph (Dirty Dozen Brass Band), and many more. He has performed at prestigious venues and events including the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Jam Cruise, French Quarter Festival, NOLA Funk Festival, Hogs for the Cause, NOLA Crawfish Festival, WWOZ Piano Night, Oak Street Po-Boy Festival, Tipitina’s, Maple Leaf Bar, Civic Theatre, Joy Theater, House Of Blues, Chickie Wah Wah, WWL Morning Show, WWOZ Radio, and Fox 8 News.