October 16, 2023, is officially known as Maestro Roderick Cox Day in Macon-Bibb County for his work, love of music, and world-wide achievements. Mayor Lester Miller and the commission presented Cox with a proclamation, which you can read here.  

 Cox was born and raised in Macon, where he attended public schools. He taught himself piano and he became involved with the Otis Redding Foundation. He was gifted a French horn from Zelma Redding, paving his way to attend the attend Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University. 

After graduating from Northwestern University, where he pursued a degree in conducting under the mentorship of Victor Yampolsky and Mallory Thompson, he became a professional conductor, taking his career to Minnesota then Berlin, Germany. He launched the Roderick Cox Music Initiative (RCMI) providing scholarships for young musicians from historically marginalized communities, allowing them to pay for instruments, music lessons and summer camps.