Ledisi-The Woman Who Can Sing Anything

This is Terrill S. Wyche for OpenAir.

Sorry for the long absence. I would like to introduce you to Ledisi. This woman is one who can sing anything. She performed at Prive this weekend, but I had to hear her voice, because I'd never heard her before. So, I downloaded three songs from iTunes. She can sing anything well. There are singers for whom that has been said, but when I heard her sing Oran "Juice" Jones' piece entitled 'The Rain,' then 'My Sensitivity,' then 'Better Than Nothing,' I was certain that I was right.

From what I heard, music literally is music to her. She has the powerful, clear voice with a solid range, but what makes her special is that she sounds comfortable singing with anyone. She has sung with the Braxton Brothers, Anibade (her own group), and she has three albums Soulsinger (US LeSun Records 2000) Feeling Orange And Sometimes Blue (US LeSun Records 2002) (Source: www.soulwalking.co.uk/Ledisi.html). None of these albums are available. When I bought the ticket to the concert, I tried Record Time, Borders, and Street Corner Music. None of them had her records in stock. Every time I asked about them, the clerk told me that they sold out all of the time.

According to her website, www.soulwalking.co.uk/Ledisi.html, she is from New Orleans but was raised in Oakland. Her mother was an R & B singer who exposed her to classical music, jazz, and gospel. This would explain why she is so comfortable singing jazz, R & B, and anything else, but I believe that training alone doesn't fully explain it.


Ledisi carries the show at Prive.

If you're ever blessed to see Ledisi in concert, you may see why she has had such a hard climb. When she performs, she can sing anybody's music and make it sound like hers. For example, she sang Luther Vandross' 'My Sensitvitity.' When she did, you couldn't hear any imitation of Luther, although you knew it was his song. When a performer can do that, it's hard for an Artist and Repertoire staffperson to market a singer like that. How do you classify him or her? Fortunately Verve records did sign her to a contract, so maybe this will last, and we'll hear more of her.

Ledisi continues to hold the crowd under her spell by performing one of her hits from the album 'Feeling Orange and Sometimes Blue.'

I was amazed at how many fans knew her lyrics and sang along during the concert. I felt like a square because I didn't know any of them, but that's my weakness. I have enormous difficulty learning lyrics, but life's for learning. Right? She even proved that she had the ability to interpret pop classics. She and the guitar player performed a heart-rending version of the Beatles 'Yesterday.'

Between, performing her own hits and the classics, I can't tell you what more she could do. On top of all of that, she danced, encouraged the band to improvise (and they pulled everything off masterfully), and made the club sound perfect. She just doesn't allow things like audio problems stop her, and there were some. So, if you ever get a chance to see Ledisi, do so. She is truly great. I say this because she doesn't remind you of anyone. She is truly unique.

What you need is an interview, which is forthcoming. So stay tuned...