Tonight I perform an encore performance of my Nina Simone Show and of course I am all nervous and panicked about: wardrobe, tickets sales and everything else! It's funny because I really do consider this show as one of the best things I've done in concert to date. So why all the nerves and insecurity? …
Much Ado
Big day for me! If you know me, then you know how much I hate making a fuss. But today is a fussy day: video shoot, photo shoot, filmed interviews of me talking about me. It's all me, me, me... Yikes! But I reckon that's what it will take to get this showboat up and sailing. I guess I must do what I gotta do. But I have have found it's easy to stomach when I'm in the hands of experts who do beautiful work and looking at the end result is less traumatic when the work is so exceptional. There …
Tonight’s the Night
My Nina Simone Tribute is tonight. It's finally here. All of the weeks of preparation all come to fruition in roughly five hours. The Shivers and I have rehearsed, conversed, arranged and thought about this night. Personally, I have considered this show as a turning point for me as a performer. It's been ages since I learned an entirely new repertoire for one concert like this. It's been a journey for me. Learning about this artist and listening to her recordings repeatedly has incorporated …
Nina Simone
I'm reeling from a terrific rehearsal with The Shivers for our upcoming Nina Simone Tribute and I am so very excited. I don't mean to be all "New Age" about it but It was an almost spiritual experience. Singing those songs after all the preparation, reading and researching I've done has put me in a place I haven't been in ... well... I can't remember being this excited. To sing, to just sing ... y'all gotta come experience this with me ... the journey continues ... and I have a feeling that …
Nina Simone & Janice Joplin Lit A Fire Under My Ass.
I have two great gigs coming up in January! I will be singing the music of two of my favorite female singers. You guessed it: Nina Simone and Janis Joplin. The Nina Simone tribute is part of a wine pairing event on Wednesday, January 16, 2013 at The City Winery 1200 E. Randolph Street and and the Janis Joplin tribute is with Chicago Vocalist Alma Mendoza at Davenport's Piano Bar & Cabaret on Friday, January 25, 2013. Both of these women artists hold a special place in my heart because of …