Née à Toronto (Canada) de parents d'origine jamaïcaine, Kellylee Evans grandit à Ottawa et commence à chanter dès son plus jeune âge dans les réunions de famille et à l'église. Sa mère, atteinte d'une allergie, disparaît prématurément. La jeune fille décide alors de se consacrer au chant.
En 2004, son premier coup d'essai se révèle prometteur : Kellylee Evans termine en seconde position du concours Thelonious Monk. Son premier album Fight Or Flight, paru en juillet 2006, remporte les louanges de la critique jazz. Il est suivi d'une version live tout aussi enthousiasmante.
L'album suivant, The Good Girl, ne fait plus aucun doute : Kellylee Evans est la descendante d'une grande lignée de divas et son art ne demande qu'à sépanouir à l'international.
Signée par le label français Plus Loin Music, elle s'entoure de grands professionnels pour réaliser son troisième album en hommage à Nina Simone : François Moutin (contrebasse), Martin Sewell (guitares) et André Ceccarelli (batterie et percussions). Paru le 7 septembre 2010, cet album intitulé Nina est bel et bien celui de la révélation française de la nouvelle sensation jazz soul.
Copyright 2010 Music Story Loïc Picaud
Vocalist Kellylee Evans continues to evolve her distinctive sound with her newest release Nina. This Juno and Gemini Award nominee received accolades for her first two albums, Fight or Flight and The Good Girl, which seamlessly fuse jazz and her own unique style of “soul pop”. Nina, her new release, is a beautiful tribute to one of jazz’s greatest vocalists and pianists, Nina Simone.
The Canadian singer was approached by French label Plus Loin Music, who had discovered her online through her Myspace site. After several years of discussion, they invited her to France in November of 2009, where she spent two days in the studio. “They said I could do whatever I wanted as long as it was standards” Evans recalls. “I had always wanted to do a Nina Simone tribute. She was one of my mom’s favourites, and my husband’s, and I love her too. So I chose her and they were really gung ho.”
Evans’ love and respect for the original recordings of the music shines through, but, even in taking on some of Simone’s most iconic repertoire, the twelve tracks on the album showcase Kelly’s own versatility, creativity and innate musicality. She is reunited with guitarist Marvin Sewell (Jason Moran, Cassandra Wilson), who appeared on her first album, and joined by bassist François Moutin (Moutin Reunion Quartet, Rudresh Mahanthappa), and drummer André Ceccarelli (Dee Dee Bridgewater, Biréli Lagrène).
