Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born 12 April 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboard player, bandleader and composer. He began his professional career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group before joining the Miles Davis Quintet, where he played a significant role in the development of the post-bop style and expanded the role of the jazz rhythm section. During the 1970s, he explored jazz fusion, funk and electronic music, making extensive use of synthesizers and electronic instruments. His album "Head Hunters" is among his most commercially successful and influential recordings.
Hancock's best-known compositions include "Cantaloupe Island", "Watermelon Man", "Maiden Voyage" and "Chameleon", all of which have become jazz standards. In the 1980s, he achieved international commercial success with the instrumental single "Rockit", a collaboration with bassist and producer Bill Laswell. He has received numerous honours, including an Academy Award, 14 Grammy Awards and the 2025 Polar Music Prize. His 2007 album "River: The Joni Letters", a tribute to Joni Mitchell, won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Since 2012, Hancock has been a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he teaches at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. He also serves as chairman of the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz, formerly known as the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz.
Hancock was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Winnie Belle Hancock (née Griffin), a secretary, and Wayman Edward Hancock, a government meat inspector. He was named after singer and actor Herb Jeffries and attended Hyde Park High School. He began studying piano at the age of seven and also received classical piano training. At the age of 11, he performed the first movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto No.
