Kellylee Evans (born 7 February 1975) is a Canadian

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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in African-American culture, African-American African-American neighborhood, communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps ...

vocalist.

Early life

Educated at

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...

(1993–2000), it was there that Evans discovered jazz when she "got lost in the elevators of the Loeb Building and found the Music department on the ninth floor of the A tower." She went on to spend seven years there and earned two BAs in Law and English before starting on her MA in Law in 1997. Those studies were put on hold as she focused on her music career. She later returned to Carleton as the university's Artist-in-Residence.

Career

In 2004 Evans won second place at the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition, where

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

Dee Dee Bridgewater Dee Dee Bridgewater (née Denise Garrett, May 27, 1950) is an American jazz singer and actress. She is a three-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, as well as a Tony Award-winning stage actress. For 23 years, she was the host of National ...

and

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and songwriter. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and ...

were among the judges. In 2006, she released her debut album ''Fight or Flight?'' for which was nominated for a 2007 Juno award. Her Juno award-winning album ''Nina'' was inspired by the life and work of

Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...

and was recorded after the French

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

Plus Loin Music, who invited her to spend two days in their

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for Sound recording and reproduction, recording and Audio mixing, mixing of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home proje ...

to record whatever she wanted. The record was released the same year as her album ''The Good Girl'', all while

homeschooling Homeschooling or home schooling (American English), also known as home education or elective home education (EHE) (British English), is the education of school-aged children at home or a variety of places other than a school. Usually conducted ...

her three children under ten years of age On tours she has opened for

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American jazz fusion guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the ...

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023), known professionally as Tony Bennett, was an American jazz and traditional pop singer. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

Chris Botti Christopher Stephen Botti ( ; born October 12, 1962) is an American trumpeter and composer. In 2013, Botti won the Grammy Award in the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album, Best Pop Instrumental Album category, for the album Impressions ...

, Dianne Reeves,

Maceo Parker Maceo Parker (; born February 14, 1943) is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s and Prince in the 2000s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many of ...

, Derek Trucks and Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. Notable live appearances have included the Sunfest, the Algoma Fall Festival with Michael Kaeshammer, and in 2012 she will debut at Toronto's

Massey Hall Massey Hall is a performing arts auditorium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1894, it is known for its outstanding acoustics and was the long-time hall of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. Although original ...

, and the Imperial Theatre. In 2013, Evans was struck by

lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

while inside her home."Crowdfunding goal for bedridden Canadian jazz singer Kellylee Evans reached"
.

CBC Music CBC Music (formerly known as CBC FM, CBC Stereo and CBC Radio 2) is a Canadian FM radio network operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It used to concentrate on classical and jazz. In 2007 and 2008, the network transitioned towards a ...

, 29 December 2015. Her career was initially on hiatus as a result, and in 2015 her friend Amanda Martinez launched a successful

crowdfunding Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and Alternative Finance, alternative finance, to fund projects "withou ...

campaign to help Evans with living and health expenses. In November 2015, Evans then fainted while getting out of the bath, causing a head injury followed by post-concussion syndrome. As a result of breathing difficulties and dizziness she was unable to sing. However, eventually Evans returned to singing in 2018 and that year was nominated for the

JUNO Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year for her album ''Come On''. The album was recorded in Belgium, and explores the different stages of a relationship. She returned for her first concert in France on 16 May 2019 for the Jazz Festival à Saint-Germain-dès-près, with two other concerts in France in October 2019 and, finally, a concert tour throughout France from 6 March 2020 through 30 April 2020.

Notable performances

* 2007

Vancouver Folk Music Festival The Vancouver Folk Music Festival (VFMF), founded in 1978, is an outdoor multistage music festival, located at Jericho Beach, Jericho Beach Park on the west side of Vancouver, British Columbia. It takes place annually on the third weekend of Jul ...

* 2009

Beaches International Jazz Festival The Beaches International Jazz Festival is a month-long music festival held each year in the lakeside Beaches community of Toronto in July. Originally started in 1989, it is now one of Canada's largest free jazz festivals with nearly 1,000,000 att ...

* 2011 Edmonton Jazz Festival

Television and film appearances

* ''4 Square'' (TV series) – performer/vocalist (2006-2007) * ''Heartbeat'' (TV series), documentary, 2008 * '' Getting Along Famously'' (TV series), Episode 1-03 "Toucha My Hand" – 20 January 2006

Awards and recognition

Awards

* Thelonious Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition – 2004, 2nd place. *

Juno Awards of 2011 The Juno Awards of 2011 honoured Canadian music industry achievements in the latter part of 2009 and in most of 2010. The awards were presented in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, during the weekend of 26 and 27 March 2011. A week of related events bega ...

, "Vocal Jazz Album of the Year" * Canadian Smooth Jazz Award – 2007, "Female Vocalist of the Year"

Recognition

Barnes & Noble Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. The company operates approximately 600 retail stores across the United States. Barnes & Noble operates mainly through its B ...

Discover New Artists (selected release – "Fight or Flight?", 2006) * Toronto Independent Music Awards –

nominee A candidate, or nominee, is a prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position. For example, one can be a candidate for membership in a group or election to an office, in which case a ...

(2006) * 2007 Gemini Awards – Nominated, "Best Performance or Host in a Variety Program or Series" * Juno Awards of 2007 – Nominated, "Vocal Jazz Album of the Year" (Fight or Flight?) *

Juno Awards of 2018 The Juno Awards of 2018, honouring Canadian music achievements, were presented in Vancouver, British Columbia during the weekend of 24–25 March 2018. The primary telecast ceremonies were held at Rogers Arena. Vancouver previously hosted the Juno ...

– Nominated, "Vocal Jazz Album of the Year" (Come On)

Discography

As leader

* ''Fight Or Flight?'' – (ENLIVEN! Records, 2006) * ''Fight Or Flight? (Live)'' – (ENLIVEN! Records, 2007) * ''The Good Girl'' – (ENLIVEN! 2010) * ''Nina'' – (Plus Loin, 2010) * ''I Remember When'' – (

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...

, 2013) * ''Come On'' – (

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

, 2015)

As contributor

* ''Independence'' – by Kobo Town (2003 – track 3 "Abatina", 8 "Beautiful Soul" & 9 "Higher Than Mercy") * ''The Gospel Christmas Project'' – (track 2 "The First Noel", track 8 "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", track 11 "Oh Holy Night" – CBC Records 3023, 2007) * '' Dancing Alone: Songs of William Hawkins''- 2008 – (Contributor, Track 8 "Merry Go Round") * ''Embracing Voices'' – by Jane Bunnett (Vocalist and co-writer – track 1 "Sway", track 2 "Kaleidoscope", track 4 "Serafina" and track 12 "The Only One") – winner, 2009

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

for Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year * ''Nomadic Injections'' – by Shamik – (2010 – track 14 "Lost (live)") * ''The Manhattan Connection'' – by Various Artists, Songs of

Jose Mari Chan Jose Mari Lim Chan (; born March 11, 1945), born José Mari Chan y Lim, is a Filipino singer, songwriter, businessman and TV presenter. Regarded as one of the country’s most renowned balladeers and composers, he is popularly dubbed as the "K ...

– 2011 – (track 4, "I Have Found My World in You" and track 7, "Easier Said Than Done") * ''

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

for

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

'' – by Various Artists – (2011, Track 9, 'Still I Rise') * ''Northern Faction 5'' – by Various Artists (2012, Balanced Records Inc, Track 6 – "Lost" ise Ashen Remix *

References

;Citations

External links

Kellylee Evans
Official website
Performing "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" – Live
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Kellylee 1975 births Canadian soul singers Carleton University alumni Canadian women jazz singers Canadian jazz singers Juno Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year winners Living people Singers from Toronto Musicians from Scarborough, Ontario 21st-century Black Canadian women singers 21st-century Canadian women singers Motéma Music artists