Celebrate Miles Davis (pt 1)

Let’s celebrate the birth of a genius this week.

I’m talking about Miles Davis, legendary trumpeter, composer, and band leader, born on May 26, 1926.

Let me tell you about an interview I saw on TikTok with another music legend, Herbie Hancock, who played with Miles Davis.

From that interview and a little additional research, I picked up some inspiring advice to share with you this week.

Leadership lesson #1:

Miles Davis pushed his team to step out of their comfort zones

Hancock said “(Miles) said ‘I don’t pay you to just play to get applause.’ He told us he paid us to experiment on stage. He said: ‘I want you to try new things, brand new stuff.’”

Jazz involves improvisation. While Davis could be demanding, Hancock also saw him as having “a mind that’s open enough… to be able to experience situations as they are and turn them into medicine… take whatever situation you have and make something constructive happen with it.”

Now, no one would call me a bad musician… I’m not a musician at all. But I recognize wisdom when I hear it, even from another era or another area of expertise.

Let’s learn from these geniuses.

More tomorrow.

#milesdavis #herbiehancock #jazz