The Pulse of Entertainment: Japanese Saxophonist Wakana Releases ‘After Hours' on Equity Records Featuring
Grammy Nominated Keyboardist Greg Manning
by Dr. Eunice Moseley
(June 8, 2026) - "Wakana is well known in Japan...Top 10,"
said Greg Manning, president of EQuity Records who signed Japanese Jazz saxophonist Wakana
and recently released her new single "After Hours," which reached #1 on Billboard's Jazz Chart
- the label's first Billboard #1 hit.
Wakana, a Smooth Jazz Japanese musician, is a genius saxophonist. Her style and sound
transcend languages, countries and genres because of her emotional delivery. She puts so much expression into her style. I
was so impressed when I heard her for the first time. That's when I reached out for an interview.
Born in 1984, Wakana is
a member of Japanese band called The Jazz Avengers. They performed in 2023 at the Billboard Live Yokohoma event as a ground-breaking
band. The band consists of Wakana on alto sax; Miho Terachi on alto sax; Ami Nakaono on soprano sax; Miku Yonezawa on tenor
sax; Marie Takeda on keyboards; Chizuru Segawa on guitar; Juna Serita on bass, and Senri Kawaguchi, the leader of the band,
on drums.
I asked Greg Manning, who himself is a 2-time Grammy Award nominated Jazz keyboardist, what he thought of Wakana
the first time he heard her play the sax and he said, "I said, ‘Wow! There's something there. It intrigued me."
"We
actually go way back," the Switzerland native continued about his connection to Wakana. "My former manager introduced
me to her 10 years ago at the Long Beach Jazz Festival. She had flown in from Japan. I started producing for her."
I was told
her English was not too good which is why I was interviewing Greg, the owner of her new record label, and the Las Vegas resident
said, "Her English is ok. She is just shy. She speaks...very slowly. My ex-wife is Japanese, so I began hiring my son,
he is bilingual, to translate for me."
The "After
Hours" single is also accompanied by a music video which, in four months, has collected over 20,000 views. The single
is produced and mixed by Greg and co-written by Wakana and Manning. Wakana's YouTube page has almost 7,000 subscribers. You
can hear Greg on the keyboard, drums and bass and Morris O'Connor (Earth, Wind & Fire) is on guitar on "After Hours."
"I just
wanted to do good music," Manning said about Wakana's single "After Hours." "We settled on ‘After
Hours.' Recorded it last summer...when my son graduated in Japan with a bachelors in New Media...I played it. He is teaching
at two schools (in Japan) - math and English."
I asked Greg Manning, who has garnered 15 Billboard #1 hits as a solo
musician, what type of artists/musicians is he looking to sign to his record label EQuity and he said, "I don't judge
musicians...I listen for emotion."
Aside from 15 of his own #1 Billboard
hits (via Kalima Music) in the Jazz genre, Greg is a fluent musician in R&B, Soul, Funk and Hip-Hip. The same week Wakana's
"After Hours" reached #1 on Billboard, another project Manning produced reached #1 too - saxophonist Jeff Ryan's
"Speakeasy" reached #1 on Billboard and Mediabase Charts. Other musicians signed on Manning's Equity Records label
include New Orleans trumpeter Patches Stewart (Quincy Jones, Anita Baker) and harmonist and bass player Patrick Bettison.
Greg is a featured musician on the works of 8-time Grammy Award/Tony Award winning Herb Alpert and #1 Billboard Chart-topper
Blake Aaron and he produced projects for Alpert and Choice Award winning Will Downing.
Wakana and Greg Manning are currently
working on another single. He is also producing a new single in honor of his mother with trumpeter Patches Stewart and saxophonist
Jimmy Reid titled "Jolanda." www.EQuityRecordsMusic.com www.WakanaSax.com www.GregManningMusic.com
SYNDICATED
COLUMNIST: Dr. Eunice Moseley has
an estimated weekly readership of over one million for her column The Pulse of Entertainment. She
is the publisher of the digital magazine www.ThePulseofEntertainment.com, which has an estimated 160,000 visitors a month. An entrepreneur, Dr. Moseley’s company, Freelance Associates, is
a business management/public relations strategic planning and consulting firm that is celebrating 32 years in 2025. Dr. Eunice
also serves as professor for the School of Business at Stanton University in Anaheim, California and serves as promotions
director (at-large)/journalist and business consultant for The Baltimore Times. Dr. Moseley founded the Uplifting
Minds II Foundation (www.UpliftingMinds.com) in 2023, a 501 C3 with a mission to empower the underserved through three major programs – One Stop Business Shop,
the ULMII Professional Conference and the ULMII Academy (business management and public relations). EVENTS:
"Uplifting Minds II" Entertainment Conference (ULMII), was launched by Dr. Eunice in 1999, to educate aspiring
artists/musicians about the business of entertainment – www.UpliftingMinds2.com. Next ULMII Entertainment Conferences for Baltimore on Saturday April 18, 2026, presented by Security Square
Mall and The Baltimore Times, and for Los Angeles on Saturday, November 7, 2026, presented by The Pulse of Entertainment
and the ULMII Foundation. The ULMII conferences are free with virtual access via Zoom. ULMII entertainment conference offers
a Professional Panel Q&A Session, a Professional Talent Showcase and International Talent Competition where the top three scored acts receive the ULMII Best Act Award and
over $20,000 valued in prizes/product/services and cash!
