www.kellyleeevans.com

“Jazz, which is wide-ranging, has just found itself another star” (Le Soleil). Filled with class + blessed with raw talent, Kellylee Evans exudes ”vocal honey... a soulful mix of rich, textured tunes that recall the greats of jazz + blues yet offer an original sound that is all her own” (The Humm). Glowing with energy, Evans’ polished yet spontaneous, passionate performances + her 100-watt smile never fail to light up a room.

Back in 2002, Evans was a master's student in legal studies by day + a burgeoning chanteuse by night but, after a near death experience, turned her full attention to music. At a post-Ottawa Jazz Festival jam session, Evans caught the ear of New York's legendary jazz bassist Lonnie Plaxico (Chet Baker, Art Blakey + Dizzy Gillespie); the result was a 2 day recording session with some of New York's finest musicians, among them Plaxico + Marvin Sewell (Cassandra Wilson, Sekou Sundiata).

Fight Or Flight, Evans’ debut disc, showcases a mesmerizing variety of exceptional songs which magically maintain a cohesive feel. Beautifully-written with intelligent + personal lyrics, her compositions are jazz based + richly flavoured with accents from reggae + sultry blues, Spanish + French folk, pop + funk, calypso + Cuban clave rhythms.

The 2004 Thelonius Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition in D.C. (judged by Quincy Jones, Dee Dee Bridgewater + Kurt Elling), awarded Evans 2nd place out of 160. She has appeared on CTV’s Good Morning Canada + has been cited by CBC’s Ontario Morning as one of the “Five Must See Concerts” for the summer. Evans is a budding talent in Canada’s jazz-urban scene... with enough soothing, syrupy soul to conjure up comparisons to Erykah Badu, Jill Scott and a bevy of other jazzy heavyweights (Exclaim!). See her in an intimate venue while you still can!