A multi-GRAMMY^®-recognized record producer, Nick Phillips has worked on several hundred commercially-released, internationally-distributed projects.

Newly-recorded projects produced by Nick include albums by jazz luminaries Kenny Barron, Richie Beirach, Bob Berg, Ruby Braff, Jimmy Bruno, Joanne Brackeen, Randy Brecker, Alan Broadbent, Jeannie and Jimmy Cheatham, Fred Hersch, Nnenna Freelon, Jon Hendricks, Roger Kellaway, Nancy King, Marian McPartland, Chris Potter, Poncho Sanchez, Ray Vega, Kenny Werner, Jessica Williams, and others.

Historical projects produced by Nick include deluxe compilations and reissues spotlighting the works of music legends Cannonball Adderley, Gary Burton, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Chick Corea, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Vince Guaraldi, Little Richard, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, Ella Fitzgerald, Albert King, Thelonious Monk, Sonny Rollins, The Staple Singers, Sarah Vaughan, and countless others.

Several Nick Phillips-produced projects have garnered GRAMMY^® nominations—including five nominations for albums by critically-acclaimed jazz vocalist Karrin Allyson alone—while the following recordings on which he worked went on to win the coveted GRAMMY^® Award: Tito Puente “Lambada Timbales” (1990, Assistant Producer), Poncho Sanchez Latin Soul (1999, Associate Producer), Terence Blanchard “Be-Bop” (2008, Co-Producer), and John Coltrane Afro Blue Impressions [Deluxe Expanded Edition] (2013, Reissue Producer). The Bill Evans Trio On A Friday Evening project on which Nick worked as the release producer won the DownBeat Readers Poll for Best Historical Album (2017).   

Jazz Trumpet Player & Recording Artist

A critically-acclaimed jazz trumpet player and Billboard-charting recording artist in his own right, Nick has released two of his own albums—Moment to Moment (co-led with pianist Cava Menzies, 2014) and Haiku (co-led with vocalist/pianist Jenny Maybee, 2016). Both albums landed on the Billboard Jazz and Billboard Traditional Jazz charts, with Moment to Moment debuting at #19 on the former (in-between releases by music luminaries Dave Koz and Diana Krall) and #14 on the latter. Both of Nick’s albums received accolades for their pristine sonics, while his lyrical, warm-toned trumpet playing drew laudatory comparisons to the work of jazz trumpet legends Miles Davis ("The Ballads Album Miles Davis Never Recorded"—East Bay Express) and Chet Baker (“…pristine and moving trumpet sound…Phillips nods to his predecessor’s (Chet Baker's) fragility but also imparts a feeling of strength that comes through a sense of restraint. ★★★★ ” —DownBeat). Nick has also been featured as a sideartist on projects by Karrin Allyson (Concord Jazz), Emi Meyer (Origin Records), and many others. “Movin’ On”—his collaboration with Billboard-charting dance music producer Tyler Stone—was released in late 2022 on Chicago’s storied house music label, Large Music. The single rocketed to the #1 spot on the Beatport "Best New Hype Deep House" chart. 

Educator

As an educator, Nick has been featured as a jazz and recording industry panelist and clinician at numerous workshops and conferences around the country, including Open World Project (an NEA-funded recording project fostering collaboration between The Brubeck Institute jazz fellows and jazz students from Russia), Jazz Education Network, Jazz Connect, International Association for Jazz Education, Jazz Composers' Symposium (University of South Florida), JazzTimes, GRAMMY^® Career Day, GRAMMY^® in the Schools, West Coast Songwriters,  California Jazz Conservatory, University of the Pacific, and Loyola University.

He has developed and taught several courses at the University of the Pacific, The Brubeck Institute, and Los Medanos College,including "Jazz Recording in the Studio," "How to Run an Independent Record Label" (which created the student-run Pac Ave Records label and produced the DownBeat Award-winning album Origins,  by The Brubeck Institute Quinet), "The Role of the Producer," "Music Fundamentals for Audio Professionals," and more.
. He has been featured as a jazz and recording industry panelist and clinician at numerous workshops and conferences around the country, including Open World Project (an NEA-funded recording project fostering collaboration between The Brubeck Institute jazz fellows and jazz students from Russia), Jazz Education Network, Jazz Connect, International Association for Jazz Education, Jazz Composers' Symposium (University of South Florida), JazzTimes, GRAMMY^® Career Day, GRAMMY^® in the Schools, West Coast Songwriters,  California Jazz Conservatory, University of the Pacific, and Loyola University.

Through his board service with the Recording Academy and the University of the Pacific he has mentored numerous students. 

Nick was the subject of the “The Power of Listening” feature story that appeared in the premiere issue of Jazz Education Network's JazzEd magazine (November 2006) and was profiled in the “Careers Off the Bandstand” article in DownBeat magazine (October 2014).

Jazz Consultant & Artist Coach

After more than two decades as full-time employee at Concord Music Group, Nick left his post as a staff producer and Vice President of Jazz and Catalog A&R in 2016 to focus on his own music production and consulting company, Nick Phillips Music. As a jazz consultant and producer he continues to produce historical reissue projects for Concord’s catalog division, Craft Recordings, and has also provided production and/or jazz consulting services for such companies as Mack Avenue Records, Blue Coast Records, iHeartRadio/iHeartMedia, and Empress Music Group. As an artist coach, Nick counts GRAMMY^®-nominated jazz vocalists Karrin Allyson and Nnenna Freelon and Juno Award-winner Emilie-Claire Barlow among his individual recording artist clients. 

Playlist Curator & Music Editor 

In his part-time, five-year stint as the Jazz Music Editor of Digital Programming at iHeartRadio/iHeartMedia (2017-2022), Nick published more than 200 expertly-curated jazz playlists, including curating more than 40 dynamic, regularly-updated playlists; more than 90 artist-specific playlists for iHeartRadio's Thumbs Up playlist series; and facilitating more than 80 artist-curated playlists for iHeartRadio's Curated By playlist series. 

Service

Nick's volunteer board service includes the Recording Academy’s (GRAMMYs^®) National Board of Trustees (2004-2009, 2015-2019), the Recording Academy San Francisco chapter Board of Governors (1998-2009, 2011-2019), and the GRAMMY^® Foundation's Board of Directors (2016). He currently serves on the Recording Academy’s national jazz membership committee and on University of the Pacific’s Music Industry Studies program advisory board (2009 - present).