Kenneth Kamal Scott (3 March 1940 – 1 February 2015) was an American singer, dancer and actor, whose sixty-five-year career had included numerous achievements in a diverse array of genres and settings, including Broadway, jazz, pop, opera, ballet and modern dance. Scott began his performance career as a singer at age seven, and by the age of eleven began performing at the

Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater (formerly the Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre; also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre) is a multi-use Theater (structure), theater at 253 125th Street (Manhattan), West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of U ...

as the featured vocalist for musicians such as Earl "Fatha" Hines. Other notable accomplishments include dancing as a member of the

Alvin Ailey Alvin Ailey Jr. (January 5, 1931 – December 1, 1989) was an American dancer, director, choreographer, and activist who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT). He created AAADT and its affiliated Alvin Ailey American Dance Cent ...

company in 1959, rising to the starring role of The Wiz in the Broadway company from 1975 to 1979, scoring a hit with the song ''Bolinas'' as featured vocalist with

Billy Cobham William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. He was inducted into the '' Mode ...

in 1978, and appearances with the Boston Pops under

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...

. In his later career, Scott began exploring and teaching the art of

Bel canto , )—with several similar constructions (, , , pronounced in English as )—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing, and whose definitions have often been misunderstood. ''Bel canto'' was not only seen as a vocal technique ...

singing, including a recital at

Merkin Hall Merkin Hall is a 449-seat concert hall in Manhattan, New York City. The hall, named in honor of Hermann and Ursula Merkin, is part of the Kaufman Music Center, a complex that includes the Lucy Moses School, a community arts school, and the Spec ...

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in October 2004. Scott was on faculty as a vocal instructor at the

Mannes College of Music The Mannes School of Music (), originally called the David Mannes Music School and later the Mannes Music School, Mannes College of Music, the Chatham Square Music School, and Mannes College: The New School for Music, is a Music school, music con ...

and the

New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music The School of Jazz and Contemporary Music is a Private university, private music school of The New School in New York City. It is located on 13th Street (Manhattan), West 13th Street in the neighborhood of Greenwich Village. It was once known ...

, also

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a Public university, public historically black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically bla ...

as Artist in Residence since August 28, 2012. He became a member of

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (legally Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha, PMA, or simply Sinfonia) () is an American collegiate social Fraternities and sororities, fraternity for men with a special interest ...

fraternity, Pi Eta chapter, on April 6, 2013. Scott was diagnosed with liver cancer in July 2014 and died on February 1, 2015.

Family

Scott comes from a musical family. His uncle,

Irving Ashby Irving Conrad Ashby (December 29, 1920 – April 22, 1987) was an American jazz guitarist. Ashby was born in Somerville, Massachusetts and started playing guitar when he was nine. His career started in 1940 when he became a member of Lionel Ha ...

, was a jazz guitarist who performed with the Nat King Cole Trio. His mother, Phyllis Ashby, performed as a big band vocalist, and his father, Leslie Scott, was a successful baritone who played Porgy in the national and international production of ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' ( ) is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy (play), ...

'' in 1953 and later played Jake in the 1959 film version. Scott has two sons by his first wife, Myrna White: Kenneth and Jonathan, who was a noted hip-hop artist under the name

Dred Scott Dred Scott ( – September 17, 1858) was an enslaved African American man who, along with his wife, Harriet, unsuccessfully sued for the freedom of themselves and their two daughters, Eliza and Lizzie, in the '' Dred Scott v. Sandford'' case ...

, and who was married to jazz singer

Adriana Evans Adriana Evans (also known as Adriana Madera; born 1974) is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter. She was born in San Francisco, the daughter of jazz singer Mary Stallings. Her debut album, entitled '' Adriana Evans'', was released in 199 ...

Broadway and theater credits

Scott had performed in numerous

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

shows including ''

The Wiz ''The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' ...

'', ''

Her First Roman ''Her First Roman'' is a musical with music, lyrics, and book by Ervin Drake, based on the 1898 George Bernard Shaw play ''Caesar and Cleopatra (play), Caesar and Cleopatra''. Original production During its out-of-town tryout, the original direct ...

'', ''I'm Solomon'', ''

Hallelujah, Baby! ''Hallelujah, Baby!'' is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden, and a book by Arthur Laurents. The show is "a chronicle of the African American struggle for equality during the irst half of the20th centur ...

'', '' Hello, Dolly!'' and '' Golden Boy''. Of his lead role in ''The Wiz'', the Los Angeles Times wrote, "Kamal shines. Kamal is a phenomenon...He could star in anything." Scott portrayed Joseph in the debut of the play ''

Black Nativity ''Black Nativity'' is an adaptation of the Nativity story by Langston Hughes, performed by an entirely black cast. Hughes was the author of the book, with the lyrics and music being derived from traditional Christmas carols, sung in gospel sty ...

'' at

Avery Fisher Hall David Geffen Hall is a concert hall at Lincoln Center on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The 2,200-seat auditorium opened in 1962, and is the home of the New York Philharmonic. The facility, designed by Max Abramovitz, was o ...

in New York City in 1961 and later performed as the Griot in the

Penumbra Theatre Company The Penumbra Theatre Company, an African-American theatre company in Saint Paul, Minnesota, was founded by Lou Bellamy in 1976. The theater has been recognized for its artistic quality and its role in launching the careers of playwrights includi ...

production of the same play in St. Paul Minnesota in 1999."New Cast of 'Black Nativity' Strong Voiced, With Standouts," Saint Paul Pioneer Press, 12/16/1999

References

External links

Scott's web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Kenneth Kamal 1940 births 2015 deaths 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers American male stage actors Male actors from Boston Musicians from Boston 21st-century African-American male actors 21st-century American male actors