"One of the '5 Must See Concerts of the Summer'" - Avril Benoit, CBC Radio (July 2006)
*nominated for Toronto Independent Music Awards 2006*
"Alongside sparse, groove-based jazz, Evans sang dominantly, filling each vocal belt with enough soothi [+]"One of the '5 Must See Concerts of the Summer'" - Avril Benoit, CBC Radio (July 2006)
*nominated for Toronto Independent Music Awards 2006*
"Alongside sparse, groove-based jazz, Evans sang dominantly, filling each vocal belt with enough soothing, syrupy soul to conjure up comparisons to Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and a bevy of other jazzy heavyweights. Featuring songs off her highly-anticipated debut, Fight or Flight?, Evans is a budding talent in Canada’s jazz-urban scene, and is well worth a listen after a good dusting of old Billie Holiday LPs.” ~ Exclaim! Magazine (March 2, 2006)
Kellylee Evans is a unique voice in the urban-jazz world, and many of today’s top musicians have taken notice. With a smooth style that slides through jazz, soul, R & B, blues and world music rhythms, Kellylee’s calming sound speaks volumes; Rich, soothing, robust and energizing, this eclectic artist ignites inspiration; and her new CD Fight or Flight? may indeed be one of the most anticipated independent releases of its kind this year. From the sultry "What About Me?" to the bluesy "I Don't Think I Want To Know", to the reggae-flavored "Let's Call A Truce Tonight" and sexy poetical Spanish vibe of "Rapunzel", the album is an eclectic and focused effort, held together by Kellylee's rich, expressive, effortless vocal range.
"I started getting into jazz before Diana Krall started getting big. Her success really floored me," Kellylee says. "Growing up, I wanted to be a pop star, but when I started liking jazz so much, I realized I wasn't going to be pop star famous, but then Diana's success really got exciting." At the time, Evans was mainly interpreting classic standards while peppering her concerts with off-beat interpretations of pop hits, such as Bjork's "Come to Me".
Evans, now based just outside the Canadian capital, Ottawa, met Chicago-born bassist Lonnie Plaxico (Art Blakey, Chet Baker, Dexter Gordon, Wynton Marsalis. Cassandra Wilson, Cyndi Lauper) in 2001 when he was playing with Ravi Coltrane at the Ottawa Jazz festival. The outgoing Kellylee talked to him at the jam session afterwards and he convinced her to come onstage to sing a couple of numbers. Some emails were later exchanged, but Kellylee was still doing her masters in legal studies at Carleton Un
|
 |
Genre/Tags: 
Ringtones
Full Tracks
