Saturday, November 29, 2008

Ledisi Releases New Holiday CD; National Tour Starts December 4

Ledisi Offers Up Some 'Christmas' Cheer, Plots Tour

Entertainment Newswire, Entertainment
By Bridget Bland
http://www.BlackVoices.com

Official Ledisi Web Site
http://www.ledisi.com/

It's almost that time of the year again. The holiday season is fast approaching and two-time Grammy Award nominee Ledisi is ready to spread some Yuletide cheer with her new Christmas album, 'It's Christmas,' which is in stores now.

The powerhouse singer-songwriter recently wowed the audience at "Black 2: Broadway's" benefit show last week at the historic Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in New York City with her rendition of Louis Armstrong's classic ballad 'What A Wonderful World,' which is featured on the new Verve Music release.

"Ledisi is a divine creation of soul and song," said Kevin-Anthony, the lead producer of the philanthropic event, which promotes arts for the black theater community. "She has tremendous talent and a tremendous journey ahead of her."

On December 4, she will kick off a 10-city "Christmas" tour at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, North Carolina. Following that date, she will make stops in Atlanta, her hometown of New Orleans, and Los Angeles. Complete tour dates listed below.

"This is my first Christmas album and I'm looking forward to performing the songs live in front of an audience," Ledisi told http://www.BlackVoices.com of the upcoming jaunt.

According to the neo-soul wunderkind. she recorded her Christmas offering, which is in stores now, in just three days in July – a stark contrast from the year-long recording process of her last CD 'Lost and Found.'

Ledisi notes that she recorded her the offering with live instruments and it includes a mix of genres, like gospel, pop and R&B. It was most important for her to maintain her personality on the recordings through focusing on what music she heard during the holidays and letting her songs stand apart from traditional Christmas albums. 'It's Christmas' includes four original songs, co-written by the singer, including 'This Christmas (Could Be The One).'

Already she has recorded a Christmas special for the Gospel Music Channel and 'This Christmas (Could Be The One)' will be featured on the upcoming 'Now Christmas 2008' compilation album.

Keep an ear out for other new music from Ledisi; She' said she is currently in the beginning stages of recording her follow-up to 'Lost and Found' and meeting with different producers. There may be other surprises in store, too.

"I'm really looking forward to this next process in my life. I've made three albums, had two Grammy nominations, a beautiful fan-base, and beat all the odds against me," she shared. "God really has been good to me." That reason inspired that song, 'Thank You.'

And, if her recent success is any indicator of what's to come, Ledisi's future will continue to be bright.

Dates for Ledisi's 'It's Christmas' tour:

December 4 - Carolina Theater - Durham, NC
December 5 - Variety Playhouse - Atlanta, GA
December 7 - Dillard University - New Orleans, LA
December 10 - El Rey - Los Angeles, CA
December 11-14 - Yoshi's - San Francisco, CA
December 16 - Dedry Experience - Chicago, IL
December 18 - Fillmore - Detroit, MI
December 19 - B.B. King's - New York, NY
December 20 - Keswick Theatre - Philadelphia, PA
December 22-23 - Rams Head - Annapolis, MD

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