Another multi-Grammy Award-winning artist is coming to the Carver Cultural Arts Center. Singer Dianne Reeves has a smooth, distinctive jazz style.
“You can call me a jazz singer, that’s fine. That’s my foundation.”
I spoke to her recently. Having researched her background I made the observation “You seem to have music in your blood, right?”
“Well, you know I came up in a musical family. It was more than just entertainment," she explained. "In a lot of ways, it was a way of life. And so I came up in this kind of rich atmosphere. By the time I was in junior high school I had decided this is what I want to do.”
And she did it well. Back in the 1970s she toured as a singer with Sergio Mendes and Harry Belafonte. She says it was a great way to learn the business.
"That’s how I cut my teeth. It was really amazing because it was my first world experience, traveling all over the world with both those legendary musicians.”
But she soon staked out her own ground professionally, and her accomplishments are many, not the least of which is four Grammy Awards. She talked about them enthusiastically.
“Yeah! The reality of a Grammy is that you’re voted on by a jury of your peers and it’s kind of nice that your peers see you in a certain way."
Reeves says her music is the product of her time.
“I’m a child of the '60s and '70s, and music was very pro 'come together' and 'brotherhood' and 'sisterhood.' And 'let’s rise and be strong together as human beings and a nation.'" About music of the era, she says, "it had messages in it, all the way from the pop music to the R & B music. And the music at that time was without boundaries."
She’s coming to the Carver Cultural Center on Saturday night, and she says you can expect this:
"…an uplifting, exciting experience, because I have a phenomenal band.”
