Sunny Ozell, Lady Stewart (born December 23, 1978) is an American singer and songwriter who resides in England. She is married to the British actor Sir

Patrick Stewart Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor who has a career spanning seven decades in various stage productions, television, film and video games. He has been nominated for Olivier, Tony, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Screen Actors ...

Early life

Ozell grew up in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

, in a musical household and began her classical training at an early age. Her parents did not play or perform themselves, but they had a passion for music and took music education seriously, getting Ozell to play the violin from the age of just four years old. She also started vocal training at the age of 11 years and soon after realised that music was the career path she wanted to pursue. From 13, she started working with an opera coach. At university in Boulder, Colorado, she majored in English Literature and sang in blues bands and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

- funk bands in her spare time throughout college. After graduating, she started performing in clubs around New York and became a part of the city's musical community with her blend of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, blues and

American roots music The term American folk music encompasses numerous music genres, variously known as ''traditional music'', ''traditional folk music'', ''contemporary folk music'', ''vernacular music,'' or ''roots music''. Many traditional songs have been sung ...

, performing both original material and interpretations of works by other renowned blues, soul and

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

songwriters.

Music career

She considers ''Take It with Me'' (which mainly consists of covers of works from artists such as Howard Jones, Hank Williams, Randy Newman,

T Bone Burnett Joseph Henry "T Bone" Burnett III (born January 14, 1948) is an American record producer, guitarist and songwriter. He rose to fame as a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band during the 1970s. He has received multiple Grammy awards for his work in fil ...

and

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

) to be her debut album. Both on ''Take It with Me'' and live, Sunny Ozell works with renowned musicians, including guitarist Aaron Lee Tasjan ( Semi Precious Weapons,

Drivin N Cryin Drivin' n' Cryin' is an American Southern rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, United States. History The band was formed in 1985 in Atlanta when Kevin Kinney hooked up with Frank French at the latter's recording studio, Dragon Path Music, and beg ...

), bassist

Andy Hess Andy Hess (born December 4, 1966) is an American bassist and former member of Gov't Mule, having joined the band in 2003. Previously, he was The Black Crowes' bassist from February 2001 until their hiatus early the following year. He has also ...

(

The Black Crowes The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1984. Their discography includes eight studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer Ge ...

Gov't Mule Gov't Mule (pronounced "Government Mule") is an American Southern rock jam band, formed in 1994 as a side project of the Allman Brothers Band by guitarist Warren Haynes and bassist Allen Woody. Fans often refer to Gov't Mule simply as ''Mule'' ...

, Uberjam), keyboard player Andrew Sherman ( George Duke, Mariah Carey),

pedal steel The pedal steel guitar is a console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all steel guitars, it can ...

player

Jon Graboff Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given", and an alternate spelling of John, derived from "YHWH has pardoned".Ryan Adams & The Cardinals The Cardinals were an American rock band that were formed in 2004 by alternative country singer-songwriter Ryan Adams and fronted by him until 2009. The band was featured on Ryan Adams and the Cardinals albums, ''Cold Roses'', '' Jacksonville ...

), backing singer Nicki Richards ( Madonna) and drummer Ethan Eubanks (

Teddy Thompson Teddy Thompson (born 19 February 1976) is an English folk and rock musician. He is the son of folk rock musicians Richard and Linda Thompson and brother of singer Kamila Thompson. He released his first album in 2000. Biography Teddy Thompson ...

Crash Test Dummies Crash Test Dummies are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba. The band is most identifiable through Brad Roberts (vocals, guitar) and his distinctive bass-baritone voice. The band members have fluctuated over the years, but its best kno ...

Joseph Arthur Joseph Arthur (born September 28, 1971) is an American singer-songwriter and artist from Akron, Ohio. He is best known for his solo material, and as a member of Fistful of Mercy and RNDM. Arthur has built his reputation over the years through ...

). Ozell performs frequently at

Rockwood Music Hall Rockwood Music Hall is a music venue at 196 Allen Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City. Owner Ken Rockwood, aka "The Professor", opened the establishment in 2005 as a small bar and music venue. Today, the venue features ...

and

The Living Room The Living Room was a music venue on Metropolitan Avenue in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, which was originally established on Stanton Street of the Lower East Side in Manhattan, New York City in 1988. The Living Room was co-owned ...

in New York and has collaborated with musicians such as

Jim Campilongo Jim Campilongo (born July 8, 1958) is a New York roots rock guitarist, known for recording a series of mostly instrumental albums. He is also known for being a member of The Little Willies with Norah Jones. Campilongo primarily plays Fender Tele ...

and

Adam Levy Adam Levy is a jazz guitarist who was a member of Norah Jones's band. Career Levy was born in Encino, California. Two of his uncles and one cousin played guitar, and his mother briefly took lessons. His grandfather, George Wyle, worked for ' ...

Norah Jones Norah Jones (born Geethali Norah Jones Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. She has won several awards for her music and as of 2012, has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. ''Billboard'' named her the ...

’ backing band, and Krystle Warren.

Musical style and influence

Ozell cites

Gillian Welch Gillian Howard Welch (; born October 2, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. She performs with her musical partner, guitarist David Rawlings. Their sparse and dark musical style, which combines elements of Appalachian music, bluegrass, coun ...

and

David Rawlings David Todd Rawlings (born December 31, 1969) is an American guitarist, singer, and record producer. He is known for his partnership with singer and songwriter Gillian Welch. He and Welch were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Son ...

as influences, for their "simplicity and their total lack of pretension", but also American jazz singer

Cassandra Wilson Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female Jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed wi ...

, in particular her 1993 album '' Blue Light ‘til Dawn''. She is also inspired by soul music that is not limited in any way to the traditional definition of the genre (i.e. Motown or

Stax Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records. Stax was ...

Personal life

Ozell is married to English actor

. They met in 2008 at Franny's restaurant in New York where Ozell was working as a waitress while Stewart was performing in '' Macbeth'' at the nearby Brooklyn Academy of Music. In March 2013, it was reported that Stewart and Ozell were engaged and they married on September 7, 2013, beside Lake Tahoe in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

with actor Ian McKellen officiating at the wedding ceremony. In marriage to Stewart, she has two stepchildren.

Discography

''Take It with Me'' (2015)

Track listing

''Overnight Lows'' (2020)

Track listing

''Git Gone'' (single) (2015)

Track listing

References

External links

*
Sunny Ozell @ YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ozell, Sunny 1978 births American women country singers American country singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from New York (state) American blues singers Country blues singers Living people 20th-century American singers American women singer-songwriters American jazz singers American women jazz singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers Country musicians from New York (state) American atheists Wives of knights Singer-songwriters from Nevada