Sing the Truth!

IMN representation: Asia, Australia, South America, Europe

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SING THE TRUTH… is a series of live concerts about “being real”.

The original SING THE TRUTH was a JVC Jazz Festival concert at New York’s Carnegie Hall in 2004 celebrating the music of Nina Simone. In 2008 and 2009 SING THE TRUTH became a touring production featuring great stars in sold-out performances at renowned venues and festivals such as the Barbican Centre in London, Jazz a Vienne in France, the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta, the Hong Kong Arts Festival, and the Sydney Opera House.

For 2011, the second installment of SING THE TRUTH is a new production honoring the music and spirit of great women of jazz, folk, r&b, gospel and the blues. The lead stars Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves, and Lizz Wright continue the legacies of recently departed legends Miriam Makeba, Abbey Lincoln, and Odetta, and perform songs by other great women of music, ranging from Billie Holiday to Lauryn Hill, along with selections of their own original songs.

Kidjo, Reeves and Wright became close friends and collaborators while traveling and performing together in the SING THE TRUTH tour in Europe in 2009. The friendship and shared spirit among the three brilliantly talented women grew into the beginnings of a new touring show. Few performing artists have embodied “being real” more than Nina Simone, and that is what drew Kidjo, Reeves and Wright together.

Following up on the original run of performances, the three women decided to open up the repertoire – to celebrate and honor songs of their most important musical heroines. It was obvious that SING THE TRUTH fully embodies the spirits of Makeba, Lincoln, and Odetta, along with the songs of Ms. Holiday, Hill and many other great women. It was also apparent that a new band was necessary to do justice to the range and passion of the music.

The all-star SING THE TRUTH ensemble features Geri Allen on piano and keyboards, music director Terri Lyne Carrington on drums, James Genus on bass, and Romero Lubambo on guitars. This remarkable group of musicians will go everywhere and anywhere that Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves and Lizz Wright feel the music takes them. The audience will be along for a memorable ride.

SING THE TRUTH means keeping it real… songs and music that is honest, from the heart, passionate, and soulful.

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*Live at the 2011 Montreal Jazz Festival
Live at Montreux
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REVIEWS

… Dianne Reeves (displayed) the most awesome combination of jazzy technical command and raw gospel-power; Angélique Kidjo the most playful and informal; and the pure-toned Lizz Wright the most emotionally captivating.
Guardian

Truth is a commodity in short supply these days, which might explain why a capacity crowd, and one with more black and female faces than usual, beat a rainy path to the Barbican last night. I Loves You Porgy and Lilac Wine were perfect for Wright’s stately contralto. Kidjo… gave an Afrobeat spin to Young, Gifted and Black and My Baby Just Cares for Me. Reeves, who delivered a superb version of But Beautiful with only bass and conga-drums, was at her powerful best on I Put a Spell on You.
London Evening Standard