Mike Sailors has performed around the world in Japan and Europe, as well as throughout the United States and Canada. He has appeared at venues such as the Blue Note (Tokyo, Sapporo, and New York locations), Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, The Jazz Standard, Yoshi’s, The Jazz Kitchen, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Symphony Space, the Bowery Ballroom, Smalls Jazz Club, Mezzow, Smoke Jazz Club, as well as the Tokyo Blue Note Jazz Festival, the EFG London Jazz Festival, the Detroit Jazz Festival, The Ravinia Music Festival, The Newport Jazz Festival and the Montreal Jazz Festival.

Sailors has worked as a sideman for bands and artists including the Birdland Big Band, Bobby Sanabria and The Multiverse Orchestra, the Fat Cat Big Band, the Baby Soda Jazz Band, the Hot Sardines, the Captain Black Big Band led by Orrin Evans, The Jason Marshall Big Band, The Steven Feikfe Big Band, Charlie Rosen and The 8-Bit Big Band, The Mingus Jazz Orchestra and Adrian Cunningham and His Old School. His past experience also includes performances with The Gerald Wilson Orchestra, Jon Hendricks, Rodney Whitaker, Dick Oatts, Wycliffe Gordon, Peter Bernstein and others. He’s also appeared as a featured soloist with the Austin Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra, and the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra.

Mike was an active Trumpet player in the Broadway scene during his tenure in the Big Apple. Past shows include Beautiful - The Carole King Story, Be More Chill, and The Prom. He also served as Music Director for Sleep No More from 2014-2017.

Along with an active performing career, Sailors has maintained a busy career as an Arranger and Composer. His first commission, dating back to 2005, came from the North American Saxophone Alliance (N.A.S.A). The piece featured the late Dewey Redman and was later recorded and featured on Redman’s last commercial recording “Live with Dewey Redman”. Since then, Sailors has been hired by the likes of Mack Avenue Records, Decca Records, the Columbus Jazz Orchestra, the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra as well as a host of internationally known musicians including Ryan Kisor, Sean Jones, Rodney Whitaker, Pete Bernstein, Jimmy Cobb, and others. Most recently, he was hired to contribute arrangements to Lady Gaga’s 2023 run of Jazz and Piano Engagement at Park MGM in Las Vegas.

Sailors also currently serves as a copyist and editor for the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra - a position he’s held since 2017. In 2018, he was made the lead copyist for the Essentially Ellington Jazz Festival. This festival, presented by Jazz at Lincoln Center, is the largest and most prestigious jazz festival in the world.

In 2024, Sailors co-released his first album as a leader - Elias Haslanger Meets Mike Sailors (Bandstand Presents). Recorded in Austin, Texas, and featuring some of the best musicians in this part of the country, this record features mostly original compositions contributed by Sailors and Haslanger.

Originally from Charleston, South Carolina Mike grew up playing in his local church. He went on to attend the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2001, Michigan State University in 2007, and The University of Texas in 2010.

In 2019, Sailors joined the faculty of The University of Texas Butler School of Music, where he leads the Jazz Trumpet Studio and mentors young artists looking to build careers in music. He currently spends his time presenting his projects and music in several of Austin’s jazz clubs, touring nationally and internationally, appearing as a guest artist with high school and college jazz programs and serves as Music Director for international recording artist Aubrey Logan and her Big Band.