Kanoa Mendenhall is a bassist and composer living in New York City. Born in Japan and raised in California by musician parents, she was fortunate to grow up in a community of musicians. From a young age, she learned from and performed with San Francisco jazz luminaries such as Bruce Forman and Vince Lateano. Kanoa moved to NYC in 2015 to study at Columbia University and the Juilliard School, and she graduated from Columbia in 2019 with a degree in East Asian Languages and Cultures. She has recorded and toured internationally with artists such as Joel Ross, María Grand, and Dayna Stephens, and has performed in groups led by Aaron Parks, Johnathan Blake, Micah Thomas, Kalia Vandever, Spellling, and more.

Photo by June Yun