Warren Lankford - Bio
Making a tremendous impact on the music industry as a songwriter, producer and musician, Warren Lankford blends gospel and contemporary musical influences into a sound that is uniquely his own.
This Salisbury, Maryland native’s musical background includes 12 years of private piano study and a B. A. Degree with concentration in Music Theory from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. A key part of Lankford's success is his experience in musical theater, having served as Musical Director for professional productions which include: “Bubbling Brown Sugar,” “Robeson,” "Black Nativity" and “Two Queens, One Castle.” His most recent musical theater work was with Blackberry Daze (Horizon Theatre Aug. 2017), Once On This Island (Georgia Ensemble Theatre Sept.-Oct. 2017) and Mamma Mia (Aurora Theatre March-April 2018). Lankford also served as an assistant instructor at the Tri-Cities High School Visual and Performing Arts Magnet Program from 1996-2009. This program has produced stars such as Outkast, Kenan Thompson, Saycon Sengbloh and Xscape, just to name a few. Many students under his tutelage have gone on to successful and productive careers in the entertainment and theater industry, the most recent being Aisha Jackson, portraying Anna in the Broadway hit "Frozen". Lankford served as musical director for many of the school’s theatrical productions, which include: “Dreamgirls,” “Once On This Island,” "Sarafina," “Purlie,” “The Wiz,” “The Gospel At Colonus,” "Chorus Line" and “Aida.” He was nominated for the 2012 Shuler Hensley Award for Musical Direction when Tri-Cities became the first high school in the world to present "The Color Purple" in March of that year and won the Shuler Hensley Award for Musical Direction in 2014 for his work with “Dreamgirls”.
Lankford Music Corporation was formed in June of 2009. Warren has over 30 years of studio experience as a session musician and a producer, writing and producing multiple independent recording projects such as "Forever You're My God" - Toni Byrd, "Songs From My Heart" - Demona Jackson Warren and his most recent project, "God Can" - John Kendall Jr. He has also played on recording sessions for popular Atlanta based artists such as vocalist/actress Chandra Currelley and violinist Delores Major. He’s co-written, arranged and produced 3 projects under the name of the Warren Lankford Project: When Love Flows (2014), Midnight Clear (2016), The Music In Me (2019) and his latest single, Thankful Heart (2021). Since March of 2020, Warren has hosted a twice monthly live performance series on his Lankford Music Corporation Facebook page called "Uplifting Keys" where he highlights music of a selected featured artist along with playing musical requests from viewers.