Growing up, Stonewall Napier, III developed a strong passion for music through listening to his father’s extensive jazz, R&B, and soul record collection. He remembers putting on records of artists ranging from John Coltrane and Julian “Cannonball” Adderley to Michael Jackson and the Temptations. Stonewall even remembers his father pulling out a set of congas and playing along to Mongo Santamaria and Cal Tjader records in the garage of their house. There was never a shortage of music for Stonewall to get a hold of and begin to form love for the sounds. 

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It was at an early age, Stonewall decided that he would be a musician, and had a sweet spot for the saxophone. This was almost stifled as his first band director, however, assured him that it was an instrument that he would not find success with.  In fact, Stonewall clearly remembers hearing the phrase, “You’ll never be any good.” Instead of being discouraged, Stonewall, with the support of his mother, set out to prove this guy wrong. His mom bought him his first saxophone, a tenor sax to be exact, and Stonewall began trying to copy the artists he heard on the records. 

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Success on the horn did NOT allude Stonewall in any form or fashion. He proceeded to take lessons and hone his craft. His resilience, grit, and passion for music afforded him the opportunity to tour Europe twice while in high school. Stonewall was also fortunate to receive music scholarships to continue his education at the University of Northern Colorado where he received his degree in Music Performance.

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Over the past 16 years, Stonewall has had the opportunity to perform with various groups and share the stage at numerous Jazz Festivals across Colorado. He has even had the opportunity to perform various events during the 2005 NBA All-Star game including Michael Jordan’s private party.

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In 2017, Stonewall decided to launch a solo album project and began working with James “JRob” Roberson of JRob Productions to create his debut solo CD titled, “Underestimated.”  The title represents the many journeys Stonewall has taken not only as a musician but also as a leader in corporate America. This CD is a mixture of all the sounds that influenced Stonewall over his entire music career. There is a little bit of jazz, some R&B, some fusion, funk, and even latin influenced sounds. When asked to describe his music, Stonewall says “I just want to create good music. Music that makes people feel good and stands the test of time. Some people would want to put me in a Smooth Jazz or Contemporary Jazz category, but I feel the music doesn’t fit well there. It’s not Straight Ahead jazz either. I want my music to be as diverse as the various types of music I grew up listening to.”