Kellylee Evans | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Kellylee Alverna Evans |
Born | Scarborough, Ontario, Canada | 7 February 1975
Genres | Jazz, soul, blues |
Occupation(s) | Vocalist |
Years active | 1990s–present |
Labels | Plus Loin Music, Universal Music France, Enliven! Media |
Website | kellyleeevans |
Kellylee Evans (born 7 February 1975) is a Canadian jazz and soul music vocalist.
Educated at Carleton University (1993–2000), it was there that Evans discovered jazz when she "got lost in the elevators of the Loeb Building and found the Music department on the ninth floor of the A tower." She went on to spend seven years there and earned two BAs in Law and English before starting on her MA in Law in 1997. Those studies were put on hold as she focused on her music career. [1] She later returned to Carleton as the university's Artist-in-Residence. [2]
In 2004 Evans won second place at the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition, [3] where Quincy Jones, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Al Jarreau were among the judges. In 2006, she released her debut album Fight or Flight? for which was nominated for a 2007 Juno award.
Her Juno award-winning album Nina [4] was inspired by the life and work of Nina Simone and was recorded after the French record label Plus Loin Music, who invited her to spend two days in their recording studio to record whatever she wanted. [1] The record was released the same year as her album The Good Girl, all while homeschooling her three children under ten years of age [1] On tours she has opened for George Benson, Tony Bennett, Chris Botti, Dianne Reeves, Maceo Parker, Derek Trucks and Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. [5] Notable live appearances have included the Sunfest, the Algoma Fall Festival with Michael Kaeshammer, and in 2012 she will debut at Toronto's Massey Hall, [6] and the Imperial Theatre.
In 2013, Evans was struck by lightning while inside her home. [7] Her career was initially on hiatus as a result, and in 2015 her friend Amanda Martinez launched a successful crowdfunding campaign to help Evans with living and health expenses. [7] In November 2015, Evans then fainted while getting out of the bath, causing a head injury followed by post-concussion syndrome. [8] As a result of breathing difficulties and dizziness she was unable to sing. [8] However, eventually Evans returned to singing in 2018 and that year was nominated for the JUNO Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year for her album Come On. [8] The album was recorded in Belgium, and explores the different stages of a relationship. [8]
She returned for her first concert in France on 16 May 2019 for the Jazz Festival à Saint-Germain-dès-près, with two other concerts in France in October 2019 and, finally, a concert tour throughout France from 6 March 2020 through 30 April 2020.
Deborah Cox is a Canadian singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Born and raised in Toronto, she began performing on television commercials at age 12, and entered various talent shows in her teenage years before becoming a professional backing vocalist for Celine Dion. In 1994, Cox relocated to the United States and was signed to Arista Records by Clive Davis, releasing her self-titled debut album the following year. Her second studio album, One Wish (1998), was certified platinum in the United States. It was marked by the commercial success of the pop crossover single "Nobody's Supposed to Be Here", which would become her most successful entry on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number two and remaining there for eight consecutive weeks. Cox signed with J Records for her third studio album The Morning After (2002), which saw moderate commercial success.
Lisa Concetta Dal Bello, also known as Dalbello, is a Canadian musician. She released three albums in the pop and pop/rock genre in her late teens, from 1977 through 1981 under her full name. In 1984, she re-emerged as Dalbello, with an edgier brand of alternative rock.
Leslie Feist, known mononymously as Feist, is a Canadian and American indie pop singer-songwriter and guitarist, performing both as a solo artist and as a member of the indie rock group Broken Social Scene.
Irene Louise Rosnes, known professionally as Renee Rosnes, is a Canadian jazz pianist, composer, and arranger.
Canadian blues is the blues and blues-related music performed by blues bands and performers in Canada. Canadian blues artists include singers, players of the main blues instruments: guitar, harmonica, keyboards, bass and drums, songwriters and music producers. In many cases, blues artists take on multiple roles. For example, the Canadian blues artist Steve Marriner is a singer, harmonica player, guitarist, songwriter and record producer.
Timothy Chaisson is a Canadian singer/songwriter from Souris, Prince Edward Island. He is a member of Juno Award winning group, The East Pointers.
Jill Barber is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Originally associated with the folk-pop genre, she has performed vocal jazz and pop music on her more recent albums.
Emilie-Claire Barlow is a Canadian singer, arranger, record producer, and voice actress. She has released several albums on her label, Empress Music Group, and has voiced characters for animated television series. She performs in English, French, and Portuguese.
Nicole Rachel "Nikki" Yanofsky is a Canadian jazz-pop singer from Montreal, Quebec. She sang the CTV Olympic broadcast theme song, "I Believe", which was also the theme song of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. She also performed at the opening and closing ceremonies for the Olympics and at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Paralympic Games. She has released four studio albums to date, including Nikki in 2010, Little Secret in 2014, Turn Down the Sound in 2020, and Nikki By Starlight in 2022.
Jodi Proznick is a Canadian jazz bassist, composer, educator and producer. In 2019, she was named Jazz Artist of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards and has been nominated for three Juno Awards. She was a recipient of the Lieutenant Governor's Arts and Music Awards in 2022 for her contribution to music education in British Columbia.
Elizabeth Shepherd is a Canadian pianst, singer, songwriter and producer.
Cindy Church is a Canadian country and folk artist. Church released three studio albums on Stony Plain Records and was nominated for Best Country Female Vocalist at the Juno Awards in 1995 and 1996. She is also a member of the award-winning group Quartette.
Heather Bambrick is a Canadian jazz singer, voice over artist, radio broadcaster and teacher based in Toronto, Ontario.
Cécile McLorin Salvant is an American jazz vocalist. Salvant is one of the most highly regarded jazz vocalists of her generation, often winning DownBeat annual critics polls. She has released seven albums since 2010, six of which have been nominated for Grammy Awards. She is a 3-time winner of the Best Jazz Vocal Album Grammy Award for her 2013 album WomanChild, her 2017 album Dreams and Daggers, and her 2018 album The Window, each released on the Mack Avenue label. Salvant's most recent album is Mélusine released in 2023 by Nonesuch Records. Salvant primarily sings in English or French, her first language, and has also recorded songs in Occitan and Haitian Kreyòl.
Barbra Lica is a Canadian jazz singer and songwriter based in Toronto. She was named one of Canada's top upcoming female jazz artists and was the first runner-up in the 2013 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Competition. Lica received her first Juno Award nomination in 2017 for I'm Still Learning under the category Vocal Jazz Album of the Year.
Bria Skonberg is a Canadian jazz trumpeter and vocalist.
Jazzmeia Horn is an American jazz singer and songwriter. She won the Thelonious Monk Institute International Jazz Competition in 2015. Horn's repertoire includes jazz standards and covers of songs from other genres, including by artists such as Stevie Wonder. She has been compared to jazz vocalists such as Betty Carter, Sarah Vaughan, and Nancy Wilson.
Charlotte Cardin is a Canadian pop, electro and jazz singer and songwriter from Montreal, Quebec. She has been nominated for 14 Juno Awards. In 2022, she received four awards for Artist of the Year, Single of the Year for her song "Meaningless", Pop Album of the Year and Album of the Year for her 2021 debut album "Phoenix". Her second album 99 Nights was released in 2023.
Coral Egan is a Canadian jazz and pop singer. She is most noted as a two-time Juno Award nominee, receiving nominations for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2003 for her album The Path of Least Resistance, and Adult Contemporary Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2014 for The Year He Drove Me Crazy. Her voice is recognized as the vocals for the English opening & closing theme songs for the 1999 animated cartoon Cybersix
Caity Gyorgy is a Juno Award winning Canadian jazz singer from Calgary, Alberta. She received the Juno Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year in 2022 for her EP, Now Pronouncing: Caity Gyorgy, and in 2023 for her debut LP, Featuring.