New York, NY (Big House Studios) -
Radio Direct X will launch an international radio campaign today of the newly mixed and re-mastered CD "Wonderful To Be" by jazz singer and composer Tammy Allen. The CD contains 11 tracks of contemporary jazz with strong classic soul and Latin flavors. Lyrically, Tammy's songs reflect her love of life and music. She has the support of the Atlanta's finest musicians on the album. "Tammy Allen is a wonderful vocalist with a powerful message. I love the song 'I am Free'," DJ Rene Williams of Jazz 91.9 FM WCLK writes.
Influenced by a multitude of artists and genres from world music, funk and soul to the great jazz vocalists like Ella Fitzgerald, Shirley Horn, Nina Simone and Phylis Hyman, Tammy considers herself 'a sponge'. "I soak it all in," she says. "I like to pepper my songs and phrasing with different influences at various times. It keeps it interesting for me." Her music is a unique blend of many styles with lots of improvisation thrown into the mix. "Especially in the live show, I have tons of energy," Tammy explains. "I love to dance, I can't stop dancing to tell the truth. I love that we still call it playing music. When it really gets going we are all playing in the sandbox together."
Tammy caught the music bug at age 13 at a B.B. King concert. "I'd never heard anything like that, anything with that kind of a pocket," she recalls. "About a week later, I said, 'That's what I'm going to do.'" And so she has. As a teen living in Los Angeles, Tammy studied voice and piano under the direction of Pearl Felton and later studied with renowned vaudeville performer Violetta Hall before launching her own performance career. She has lived and worked in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. After spending a decade touring the western part of the United States, Tammy moved to Atlanta five years ago.
A charismatic performer and inspiring personality, Tammy has always been a natural organizer. She started her own Jazz Jam session at the Red Light Caf? in Atlanta to gain experience for herself in working with the city's finest players and to benefit others at the same time. "From there I went on to gigs at the main jazz clubs in town, Caf? 290 and Churchill Grounds," she remembers. "I started a showcase that would feature original jazz music." Tammy has also been playing an instrumental role in Atlanta's one-and-only The Atlanta Jazz Festival "Future of Jazz" Competition, receiving an award signed by Mayor Shirley Franklin for her hard work and much appreciated contribution to the festival.
The singer owns and runs Big House Studios, a full service studio that specializes in voice training and songwriting, creating new opportunities for other artists as well. "I have inadvertently become a jazz activist," Tammy smiles. "In addition to being a producer of Atlanta's Future of Jazz Competition, I am also a board member of Southeastern Organization for Jazz Arts." She laughs, "The funny thing is I have made all of these contacts and create so many opportunities for myself and others without singing. I see the benefit of working from the inside. A totally different approach from what most artists are taught to do. While all of this has been a great experience, I am a passionate artist first."
