Mar 21st 2012
Livermore, CA USA
Lizz Wright continues her genre-defying journey with Fellowship, a nod to her roots in gospel on the one hand and her gospel of eclecticism on the other. Beginning with the ecumenical Me’Shell N’Degeocello-penned title track, Fellowship is not a traditional genre exercise. While emphasizing a healthy dose of the rousing hymnody Wright grew up singing in the church (she is, indeed, the daughter of a Georgia pastor), the album borrows from the decidedly secular catalogs of Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Gladys Knight, topped by even more modern material from Joan Wasser, of the indie-rock act, Joan as Police Woman. Wright says, “I wanted to do some songs from home and some straight-up gospel, but I also had some other things I want to share that I see as sacred.’”
Wright had taken some time off last year to stay close to home and get back in touch with non-musical interests—including graduating from culinary school. Deciding 2010 was time for a new album, looking homeward quickly provided focus. “I went into this project thinking that it was a good time to sing the songs that I needed in my life and that I felt like my people needed. The gospel is always in my heart and veins, and the voices of my family singing those stories is always with me and at any time I can visit that place and come back with the riches quickly.”
There was never any question that Fellowship would be a mixture of standards known to the African-American church along with some redefining choices. “I definitely needed to represent where I came from, but I also needed to say something now. When I was considering possibilities for covers, I thought it would be great if I approached the work of contemporaries like Joan and Me’shell.
“Compared to my previous albums, Fellowship was made rather quickly, but because it evolved within the gathering of generous and gracious friends like Toshi Reagon, Bernice Johnson Reagon, and Angelique Kidjo, the elements came to life, into focus, and I had a clear direction after a short period.”
Growing up in the Pentecostal church, Wright wasn’t allowed to listen to popular music. Oddly—or maybe serendipitously—the historic night when she really made the leap from her early musical life to her present one involved putting a “secular” spin on a spiritual.
“There are some circles you could draw here that are real. I was blessed to be able to work on this album with the pianist that I had my very first gig with, one of my best friends, Kenny Banks. He’s one of the ministers of music at a Methodist church in Atlanta, and was right there when I was 19, watching me make the transition from only gospel to that first night where I sat in at a club on Peachtree Street downtown. I sang, ‘Amazing Grace’—but as a blues. This song that I had known all my life just came roaring out of me with anger and sadness and all my curiosity,” she adds laughing.
“The funny thing about the transition from only gospel to jazz is that I felt that jazz had a familiar sacredness to it. In all of my adventures in music, I’ve been drawn in by sparks of the familiar inside of the unfamiliar. For example, when I first heard what people were calling the blues, I was taken aback, because I had heard that sound all my life. That was how the mothers sang in church.”
Wright has been the recipient of nonstop critical acclaim and ever-increasing audiences ever since her Verve debut, Salt, in 2003. But she’s confounded expectations along the way about what should be expected of an artist who’s known for topping the jazz charts but is far from most people’s idea of a traditional jazz singer. “I don’t know how to aim at groups. Songs carry stories that I need to tell, and I just pick them up and sing. Music has allowed me the opportunity to ask a lot of questions, to open and reconcile lot of things. My life is broad and very open, so my seemingly eclectic choices are also natural.”
Wright openly reflects on her motivations. “It’s time for me to think about what helps and heals somebody else. And sometimes it’s good to sing simple things that people need, besides pieces that are more intriguing or that have great poetry. That’s where I found myself this time around. There are a lot of tools in here. Sometimes we have songs to climb up on to get over obstacles.” Prepare to get lifted!
Mar 21st 2012
Livermore, CA USA
Bankhead Theater
Lizz Wright
Mar 23rd 2012
San Francisco, CA USA
Herbst Theatre
Lizz Wright
Mar 25th 2012
San Diego, CA USA
Anthology Restaurant
Lizz Wright
Apr 12th 2012
Antwerp, Belgium
Roma Cultural Center
Lizz Wright
Apr 18th 2012
Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Salle Robert Krieps
Lizz Wright
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Technical Rider
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Biography/Program Notes (2011): Download (doc)
Press Kit (2009): Download (pdf)
From Modernicolas De la tierra al cielo con Lizz Wright Afuera el cielo tronaba, enfurecido bramaba, y sollozaba en forma de torrentes de agua. Adentro, sonaba una voz venida del cielo, forjada en la Tierra, que sosegaba las almas que...
Posted Nov 28th, 2011
Do not miss this video of Lizz Wright’s appearance on Catalan television TV3 after her show in Girona, Spain this past month! Watch it here No et perdis aquest video de TV3 de la cantant Lizz Wright a Girona aquest...
Posted Nov 26th, 2011
From Malaga Hoy Lizz Wright, distinción en la apertura del ciclo de jazz de la Diputación El nuevo ciclo de la Diputación Jazz en Málaga inauguró ayer su primera edición en el Auditorio de la entidad provincial con la actuación...
Posted Nov 10th, 2011
From Radio Gladys Palmera LIZZ WRIGHT Y RODRIGO Y GABRIELA, JUNTOS PERO NO REVUELTOS La noche del 17 de noviembre el Festival de Jazz de Madrid propone dos planes muy apetecibles By: Celia Jerez El Festival de Jazz de Madrid...
Posted Nov 6th, 2011
From ElPais.com Lizz Wright y otros talentos en el Cartagena Jazz FestivalS By: Alfonso Cardenal Es difícil pensar que cuando Ernest Hoffmann dijo que “la música empieza donde se acaba el lenguaje”, estuviese pensando en Lizz Wright. Una lástima. Varios...
Posted Nov 5th, 2011
From Radio Malaga Hoy Lizz Wright abre en noviembre una nueva cita con el jazz en la Diputación By: Rocio Armas Noviembre es el mes del jazz, al menos en Andalucía. El festival de Granada, el ciclo que celebra el...
Posted Nov 1st, 2011
Lizz Wright’s appearance at Mountain Stage will be re-broadcast August 5th, 2011. Air times vary by station, a complete list of which can be found here The following week, Wright’s set will be posted at NPR.org/mountainstage and archived for continued...
Posted Aug 2nd, 2011
from NPR By Stephen Thompson Filmed and edited by Michael Katzif; photo by Abby Verbosky/NPR Lizz Wright: Tiny Desk Concert She hasn’t yet broken out commercially in a big way, but singer Lizz Wright has long seemed poised to follow...
Posted Mar 17th, 2011
from The Daily Californian Lizz Wright Blends Jazz, Soul In Mesmerizing Yoshi’s Show By Charlene Petitjean It wouldn’t be an overstatement to describe Lizz Wright, who performed at Yoshi’s Jazz Club in Oakland last Saturday, as an inspiring and magnetic...
Posted Feb 1st, 2011
from Washingtonexaminer.com Lizz Wright shares ‘Fellowship’ Lizz Wright’s “Fellowship” is a moving feast of songs that hark back to her gospel heritage. The 12-track album is the focus of her nationwide tour, which will allow Washington area fans to savor...
Posted Jan 31st, 2011
Lizz Wright performed live on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Monday night. Watch the video here
Posted Jan 25th, 2011
Catch Lizz perform on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno this Monday January 24th. Be sure to check your local listings for exact stations and times.
Posted Jan 22nd, 2011
From NPR Lizz Wright grew up in Georgia and began singing gospel music at a young age. While her previous albums have showcased her ability to sing in multiple styles — jazz, blues, and soul — her latest, Fellowship, finds...
Posted Oct 26th, 2010
Lizz Wright will be featured on this week’s Mountain Stage on NPR. Click here for air times and stations in your area.
Posted Oct 20th, 2010
From DownBeat Editors’ Picks: October By Frank Alkyer When Lizz Wright debuted earlier in this decade, she was being sold as the next great modern jazz singer. But with her latest recording, Fellowship, she could become the next great modern...
Posted Oct 13th, 2010
From The Charleston City Paper by Brian Sewell Published 5/26/10 Stepping out of the studio and taking our call, Lizz Wright takes a deep breath. She sounds hard at work — exhausted, but not a bit disheartened. “It will hopefully...
Posted Jun 1st, 2010
By Stuart Munro from the Boston Globe “So much light in here,’’ Lizz Wright remarked a short way into her set. “Makes me feel like confessing.’’ Then, a murmured offhand observation: “I guess that’s what I’m doing up here anyway.’’...
Posted Apr 10th, 2010
Earlier this week, Lizz Wright was interviewed on WGBH’s Greater Boston with Emily Rooney (scroll down to March 31 in the little window to see the segment) Lizz was also featured today on NECN’s Morning News
Posted Apr 2nd, 2010
Lizz recently contributed to Nordstrom’s The Royal Blues Compilation which celebrates the Queens of Blues and Jazz. This unique compilation honors black history month with a collection of 20 powerful tracks. Watch Lizz speak about her rendition of "A Change...
Posted Feb 26th, 2009
The largely self-penned The Orchard finds Wright mining her own experience to create an unmistakably personal musical statement. The warmth and resonance of Wright’s gospel-trained contralto is matched by the intimacy and authority of such original compositions as “Coming Home,”...
Posted Feb 26th, 2008
Official Website: www.lizzwright.net
Label: Verve Forecast
Current Release:
Lizz Wright Symphony
Singer-songwriter Lizz Wright has enjoyed international praise for her signature mix of jazz, gospel and R&B and effortlessly magnetic performances. The New York Times deems her style, “Pitch-perfect, with a smoky, full bodied texture, her voice is impressive in its steadiness, control and rhythmic subtlety.” Wright’s latest release, Fellowship, mixes the familiar gospels of her youth with popular songs by the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton. Her symphonic offering presents her gospel-trained contralto on a grand scale, set to classic tunes, jazz, sixties pop and original songs.
| Song For Mia | 4:53 | Lizz Wright |
| When I Fall | 3:55 | Lizz Wright |
| My Heart | 4:00 | Lizz Wright |
Wright’s voice emerges as an irresistible force of clarity and emotion
People
Wright is that rare artist who is both a great voice and a great singer
USA Today
her leisurely delivery can suggest either swooning romance or yearning prayer
The Washington Post
She makes an audience focus, and savor life
The Boston Herald
278 Main St. Gloucester, MA 01930 USA
Ph (978) 283-2883 Fax (978) 283-2330
