A jam session is a musical act where musicians play (i.e. "jam") by improvising without extensive preparation or predefined arrangements. Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one participant, or may be wholly improvisational. Jam sessions can range from very loose gatherings of amateurs to sophisticated improvised recording sessions intended to be edited and released to the public.

The New York scene during World War II was famous for its after-hours jam sessions. One of the most famous was the regular after-hours jam at Minton's Playhouse in New York City that ran in the 1940s and early 1950s. The jam sessions at Minton's were a fertile meeting place and proving ground for both established soloists like Ben Webster and Lester Young, and the younger jazz musicians who would soon become leading exponents of the bebop movement, including Thelonious Monk (Minton's house pianist), Charlie Parker, and Dizzy Gillespie. The Minton's jams were legendary for their highly competitive "cutting contests", in which soloists would try to keep up with the house band and outdo each other in improvisation skill.

Tremaine "Trey" Aldon Neverson (born November 28, 1984), better known by his stage name Trey Songz, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer and actor. His debut album, I Gotta Make It, was released in 2005, while his second album, Trey Day, was released in 2007. His third album, Ready, was released in 2009 while his fourth studio album, Passion, Pain & Pleasure, was released on September 14, 2010.

Songz was born Tremaine Aldon Neverson on November 28, 1984, in Petersburg, Virginia. Raised as a military brat, Songz did not have aspirations to have a musical career as a child due to his shyness, saying "Singing wasn't a reality for me, until other people started noticing I sounded good." He recognized his vocal abilities at the age of 14. Reluctant to sing, he began performing with encouragement by friends and family in high school. Record producer Troy Taylor discovered Songz during a talent show in 2000, which led him to signing a recording contract with Atlantic Records in 2002. After graduating from high school in 2002, Songz moved to New Jersey to begin recording his debut album, though recording didn't actually begin until 2003.

Jordan Houston, better known by his stage name Juicy J (born April 5, 1977) is an Academy Award-winning American rapper and record producer from Memphis, Tennessee and is the co-founder and a member of the duo Three 6 Mafia (formerly known as Triple Six Mafia). He is also the younger brother of fellow member, Project Pat. His second solo album, Hustle Till I Die, was released June 16, 2009. He won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp". In December 2011 Juicy J confirmed rumors that he was the newest member of Wiz Khalifa's "Taylor Gang." He is featured with other members of Taylor Gang on the cover of Source Magazine's May 2012 issue.

Juicy J is most notable for his crunk style of rapping, highlighted by his patented "heavy-breathing" and "stomping" background sound effects. Juicy J's production style is characterized by fast-rolling high hats, sharp snares, and deep cinematic bass. He also incorporates samples from classic soul artists such as Willie Hutch, David Ruffin, and Isaac Hayes.

Aloe Blacc (born Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III; January 7, 1979) is an American soul singer, rapper and musician. He is married to Australian rapper Maya Jupiter.

Blacc was born in Orange County, California to Panamanian parents. He began his music career in 1995 as a rapper in the hip hop duo Emanon with producer Exile.

By the late 1990s, Blacc was part of the duo Emanon and joined the group Lootpack on tour in Europe. The duo released six albums. This led to Blacc working with the French Jazz group Jazz Liberatorz. He released an album at the end of the 1990s.

In 2003, Blacc signed with Stones Throw Records and began a solo career. On July 11, 2006, he released his first LP album, Shine Through, on CD, vinyl record and online (on the Stones Throw website).

He then toured across Europe and the U.S. with Emanon, while working on his second solo album.

In 2009, Blacc collaborated with the Japanese hip hop producer Cradle. They called themselves Bee.

In 2010, Blacc released his second album, Good Things, on Stones Throw records. The album was produced by Jeff Dynamite and Leon Michels for Truth & Soul Productions.

Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, (born 30 March 1945) is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and influential guitarists of all time. Clapton ranked second in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and fourth in Gibson's Top 50 Guitarists of All Time.

In the mid 1960s, Clapton departed from the Yardbirds to play blues with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. In his one-year stay with Mayall, Clapton gained the nickname "Slowhand". Immediately after leaving Mayall, Clapton formed Cream, a power trio with drummer Ginger Baker and bassist Jack Bruce in which Clapton played sustained blues improvisations and "arty, blues-based psychedelic pop." For most of the 1970s, Clapton's output bore the influence of the mellow style of J.J. Cale and the reggae of Bob Marley. His version of Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff" helped reggae reach a mass market. Two of his most popular recordings were "Layla", recorded by Derek and the Dominos, another band he formed and Robert Johnson's "Crossroads", recorded by Cream. A recipient of seventeen Grammy Awards, in 2004 Clapton was awarded a CBE for services to music. In 1998, Clapton, a recovering alcoholic and drug addict, founded the Crossroads Centre on Antigua, a medical facility for recovering substance abusers.