Guitarist | Composer | Creative project lead
Moved to London from Hong Kong since Dec 2020 and has been active in UK jazz scene, with his unique style on guitar playing and special sound design on his tone quickly become one of the demanding musicians in town, performing with different project (PYJAEN, Brown Penny, Mama Sutra, Orii Community).
Tjoe can also be found performing with the likes of emerging artists in UK music scene such as Caleb Kundle, BINA, Cherise, Dayo Bello, and many more. Most notably, Tjoe is part of Elmiene touring band in UK, Europe & US, with their latest feature on NPR's Tiny Desk Concert on November 2024.
NTBM (Not-To-Be-Missed) is Tjoe Man Cheung's own jazz collective, originally started in 2017 after the inspirational jam sessions in London. The current international ensemble comprises of Grifton Forbes-Amos (trumpet), James Morgan (drums), Ben Crane (bass), Marco Marotta (tenor saxophone), and Tjoe himself on guitar & main composer. The fusion of cultures result in interesting improvisation and experimental music, which indeed epitomise the essence of jazz. From Asia to Europe, NTBM brings groovy urban jazz, uptempo swing, and double lead complex horn lines presented by dynamic line-ups.
The latest EP "Late Show" in 2023 has brought them to perform multiple sold-out show at the world-renown Ronnie Scott's, and made their first festival debut in Love Supreme Festival 2024 and Brighton Jazz Festival 2024. With the help of The National Lottery & Art Council Project Grants Tjoe & NTBM has completed their first Not-To-Be-Missed headliner UK tour 2024 at Bristol, Leeds, Brighton, Manchester, and the homecoming show in London.
'Tjoe's compositions and performance style is incredibly unique and his clear charisma as a band leader clearly communicate his effectiveness working with other musicians.'
- Adam Maestro, Sofar Sounds London
Tjoe is a London-based top musician from Hong Kong who can always surprise the crowd with his engaging tunes, powerful soloing and unique improvisation. Over a decade, the Musicians Institute alumnus has made progress from an accomplished guitarist and arranger to a creative music project leader. He has been playing 100+ gigs on average per year ever since he has worked professionally.
In 2016, Tjoe initiated NTBM (not-to-be-missed), a jazz collective formed by emerging musicians from around the world. The instrumental band has brought their contemporary music from the UK to Asia, delivering sensational performances at Kanazawa Jazz Festival (2017), Jazz Gala featuring Kendrick Scott (Hong Kong, 2019) and Hong Kong International Jazz Festival (2018 & 2020). The release of NTBM's debut album, and orange, in 2017 saw an electrifying experiment and musical conversation in African-American music. After a successful tour in Asia, the band made Hong Kong as their final stop where they played host to the only jazz jam session in town for two years. In 2020, Tjoe took the band to the next level by brewing their second album, #Mixtape. The seven groovy tracks are interwoven to depict different aspects of the trend in the urban world in a retro style. NTBM's on-stage / on-screen energy is underlined.
Tjoe's versatility is seen from his dedication to other bands. He is the guitarist of The Majestic G, a seven-piece funk & soul band, and tfvsjs, a six-piece math rock band. The latter was invited to top festivals like Strawberry Festival (Beijing, 2018) and The Sound of Munich Now (Munich, 2018), representing Hong Kong's innovation.
Currently a Meloncon Guitars artist, Tjoe was appointed as the music curator for a weekly show at K11 MUSEA (Hong Kong) in 2019. Other of his projects include studio recording for pop music, playing at live TV programmes and pop concerts in East and Southeast Asia.