Dueling Pianos & Billy Joel/ Elton John tribute by John Arden Music
- Island Park, NY
- Dueling Pianos
- $500 and up
I’m Randy MC, a New Orleans-based keyboardist-singer, music director, and genre-bending performer. A shape-shifter at the keys and storyteller through song, I offer solo piano/vocals, jazz trio options, and polished live music for weddings, cocktail hours, dinners, church services, theatre events, and private parties. Rooted in classical, jazz, and musical theatre training, I move through jazz standards, pop, R&B, Motown, classical favorites, and requests with pianistic sensitivity, vocal range, and room-aware presence.
2 reviews
Paul H.
August 23, 2024I believe I cannot praise and recommend Randy MC too much.
Apart from being a highly accomplished keyboard player and excellent vocalist, nothing I asked was too much trouble for him. I was so surprised by his kindness and patience. The end product was a sensational night due in no small part to Randy.
We met as perfect strangers doing a business transaction and parted as friends.
He deserves more work and all the success he works so hard for.
Hired as: Keyboard Player, Pianist
Elizabeth L.
May 13, 2019Very talented professional. Played gorgeous music at our home during our rehearsal dinner.
Hired as: Pianist
Pianist-Singer
Many thanks for your review and appreciation of my music! I wish the very best for your newlyweds and the rest of fam.
Price range: $200 - $6000
Languages: Chinese, English, French, Latin
Gig length: 5 - 180 minutes
Unions: AGMA
Audiences can expect polished, expressive live music shaped to the room. Depending on the event, I can offer solo piano, piano/vocals, keyboard, or jazz trio options, with a repertoire that moves through jazz standards, pop, R&B, Motown, musical theatre, classical favorites, worship music, and requests when possible.
Clients get more than background music. They get a prepared, flexible performer who listens, reads the energy of the room, and supports the flow of the event. I can create an elegant cocktail atmosphere, provide warm dinner music, lead songs when needed, or step forward for featured musical moments. With experience as a pianist, singer, music director, accompanist, and theatre musician, I bring sensitivity, professionalism, and musical range to every booking.
Randy MC is a keyboardist-vocalist-songwriter, music educator, music producer, and actor whose career reflects a genre-bending presence built through versatility and real-world experiences. Born in Taiwan while his immigrant parents were doing missionary work, he was raised in SoCal, where early exposure to discipline, spirituality, and academic rigor shaped the roots of his artistry. Gifted with musicality from his mother, he began piano studies at age three and later expanded into flute, voice, organ, and conducting. A Performer’s Associate Diploma from The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto marked his first formal credential. He later earned dual Bachelor of Music degrees in Performance and Jazz Studies at Shenandoah Conservatory. Grounded in Western art music, jazz, and musical theatre, his technical prowess underlies every choice he makes onstage.
Randy has worked professionally for over a decade as a collaborative keyboardist, church musician, and private instructor online and across California, the DMV, and the Deep South. Over five years as a keyboardist and vocalist with the Souled Out band, he performed across Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and D.C., playing R&B, funk, Motown, and pop music across a myriad of venues and festivals. He also held positions as music director and pit pianist for several theatre productions, including The Addams Family, Thoroughly Modern Millie, and The Wedding Singer. He performed as Monastatos and served as understudy for Tamino in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte at the Bethesda Summer Music Festival. Life as a modern-day bard pushed him to pivot toward online teaching, allowing him to continue mentoring students while performing and producing across the country. While traversing Nashville, Atlanta, Orlando, Memphis, New Orleans, and Austin, Randy immersed himself in the culture and musical spirit of each city, which deepened the foundation built through his formal studies. Consequently, he completed his debut EP #StartAsianLove in California as an artistic statement to reclaim and celebrate his heritage and visibility through music.
Randy later claimed New Orleans as his second home, drawn to the city’s legacy and its air of creativity. He debuted with New Orleans Opera in Saint-Saëns’s Samson et Dalila and returned that same season in Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore. Other recent performance credits also include the role of Henry in Next to Normal, serving as music director and pit pianist and keyboardist for The Christmas Schooner, and a guest appearance as a dancer on Sony’s The Corps. As a keytarist with Bamboula 2000, an Afrobeat band formed through the Congo Square Preservation Society, he contributes to festival performances throughout the year as a featured collaborator, engaging with the city’s deeply rooted heritage.
Randy continues to build a multi-dimensional career as an entertainer, music producer, music director, and educator. Through his company, he is developing an immersive virtual platform that enhances online music learning, remote music production, and livestream performances. He currently serves as Music Director at John Calvin Presbyterian Church in Metairie, Louisiana, and as a rotating Staff Accompanist and Music Director at Loyola University New Orleans, while continuing to foster a vibrant global community of artists and learners grounded in creative collaboration and musical exchange.
Technical needs depend on the booking. If there is a tuned piano or quality keyboard onsite, I can use that. If not, I can bring my own keyboard setup when arranged in advance.
For solo piano or keyboard, I need a flat, stable performance area, access to a nearby power outlet, and enough lighting to read music. For piano/vocals, larger rooms, or more concert-style settings, good lighting and onsite sound support are helpful but not always required. A dedicated sound technician is appreciated for larger events, especially when vocals, multiple musicians, or amplification are involved.
Outdoor events require a covered, shaded, dry performance area with safe access to power. For jazz trio bookings, please allow additional space for the musicians and confirm sound needs in advance.
I am happy to coordinate setup details ahead of time so the music, staging, sound, and overall atmosphere support the event smoothly.
Saturday
Birthday Party
7:00pm - 9:00pm
•
New Orleans, LA
Thursday
Wedding Ceremony
2:00pm - 3:00pm
•
New Orleans, LA
Friday
Rehearsal Dinner
6:00pm - 8:00pm
•
Harrisonburg, VA
My set list is tailored to the event, venue, and ensemble size. While this profile focuses on solo piano, piano/vocals, and keyboard performance, I can also coordinate jazz trio options or expand into a fuller band setup depending on the occasion, budget, venue, and production needs.
A typical performance may include a mix of jazz standards, pop, R&B, Motown, musical theatre, classical favorites, worship music when appropriate, and selected published Randy MC originals.
Sample repertoire may include:
Jazz / Standards:
Fly Me to the Moon
Autumn Leaves
Misty
Summertime
They Can’t Take That Away from Me
It’s the Blues
Pop / R&B / Motown:
Love on Top
Isn’t She Lovely
Signed, Sealed, Delivered
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough
Just the Way You Are
If I Ain’t Got You
Musical Theatre / Vocal:
Someone to Watch Over Me
Some Enchanted Evening
On the Street Where You Live
The Impossible Dream
Classical / Sacred / Event Music:
Ave Maria
Vittoria, mio core
Sure on This Shining Night
Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
Amazing Grace
Original Music:
Selected published Randy MC originals can be included by request, especially for clients who want something more personal, artist-forward, or unique to the event.
For smaller events, I can keep the music elegant, atmospheric, and room-aware. For larger venues or more featured entertainment moments, the set can become more soulful, interactive, rhythmic, and ensemble-driven.
My influences come from several musical worlds at once: New Orleans jazz, classical piano, musical theatre, Motown, R&B, pop, gospel/worship music, and the great tradition of singer-pianists and collaborative keyboardists. I’m especially inspired by artists who combine deep musicianship with emotional storytelling, groove, elegance, and presence, including Jacob Collier’s harmonic imagination and genre-fluid creativity, and Bruno Mars’ polished blend of pop, funk, R&B, showmanship, and crowd connection. As a performer, I bring those influences together through jazz standards, reimagined pop and R&B covers, classical sensitivity, theatrical phrasing, and a room-aware approach shaped by both training and real-world performance.
Microphone
Amp
Extension Chord
XLR Cable
1/4" Cable
Keyboard Pedal
Sound Board
Speakers
Stage Lighting
Rig
Singing Pianist