Sdban records news – Orson Claeys’ debut – single ‘Rodney’s dance’
"RODNEY'S DANCE" is the first single from Orson Claeys' debut album
Release: June 12, 2026
RODNEY’S DANCE - Single by Orson Claeys | Spotify
Inspired by skateboarding culture, the track pays tribute to the people, places, and moments that come with growing up on four wheels. Borrowing its title from the legendary skateboarder Rodney Mullen, whose technical innovation and creative approach redefined modern skateboarding.
The song reflects on endless days spent skating at local Ghent skateparks such as Keizerpark and growing up within the city's skate scene, alongside crews like Dirty South and 1st8 Skateshop. Looking back, Claeys sees those formative years as an experience that left a lasting mark on him.
"Skateboarding gave me a sense of creativity, freedom, and belonging, and in ways helped shape the musician I am today. It has so many similarities to jazz that I only fully recognize now, years later. Both are communities that welcome anyone, regardless of where they come from or who they are, there's value to anyone who takes part in them. That is also why I chose to continue my path in jazz rather than another genre. In many ways, it felt familiar. I had grown up skateboarding and spent nearly a decade immersed in that community, so the spirit of jazz already felt deeply connected to something I knew and understood."
Rooted in a contemporary jazz vocabulary and drawing inspiration from artists such as Ambrose Akinmusire, Robert Glasper, and Jason Moran, Claeys explores the space where jazz and hip-hop aesthetics meet. Fragments of sampled audio connected to Rodney Mullen are woven into the composition, functioning less as direct quotation than as texture and reference, while nodding to the vital role sampling continues to play within hip-hop music.
Rather than approaching nostalgia as sentimentality, "RODNEY'S DANCE" draws from the quiet but lasting influence of the spaces and subcultures that shape people over time. More than a composition about skateboarding, the track revisits a specific moment within youth culture, where music, movement, and community continuously overlap.

ORSON CLAEYS
Orson Claeys (1998, Ghent) is a Belgian jazz pianist and composer who has rapidly emerged as a distinctive voice within the contemporary jazz scene. With a strong musical vision and a refined compositional instinct, he merges modern jazz with influences from hip hop, Middle Eastern music, and R&B. His work moves between introspective melodies, layered rhythms, and adventurous improvisation, always driven by a keen sense of atmosphere and storytelling.
After studying at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, Claeys quickly gained recognition within the Belgian jazz landscape. Less than a year after graduating, he signed with the renowned label Sdban Ultra, further developing his artistic trajectory.
Over the past two years, he has emerged as a notable new artist within the Belgian jazz landscape. Following the release of his debut EP Odyssey to Self in 2024, he performed at leading venues and festivals including Ancienne Belgique, De Roma, Gent Jazz, Flagey, Leuven Jazz, and Lotto Brussels Jazz Weekend. Along the way, he was selected for Brussels Jazz Alert and national radio station Klara's Twintigers program, featured on the Lefto Presents Jazz Cats compilation, and received the jury prize at the first edition of Brussels Jazz Vanguard.
Claeys is currently in the final stretch towards the release of his debut album, which is steadily taking shape as a work where jazz and hip-hop naturally intertwine, informed by influences drawn from boxing, skateboarding, and wider street culture. With his open approach to composition and a growing reputation as a live performer, Orson Claeys stands among a new generation of Belgian jazz musicians who are bringing a contemporary and international dynamic to the genre.