Ledisi Showcases 'Large, Raw Talent' (NY Times) With Return To Musical Theatre And Performances With The Count Basie Orchestra This Fall

New York, NY. (Top40 Charts/ Shore Fire Media) - This fall, two-time GRAMMY nominee Ledisi will showcase her "big, expressive voice" (Washington Post, 2.13.08) in unique performances on both the east and west coast. Demonstrating the breadth of her musical prowess, Ledisi will star in the Reprise Theatre Company's musical 'Once On This Island' in Los Angeles this September and sing with the Count Basie Orchestra at NYC's Blue Note for five nights in October.

With roles in 'The Wiz' and 'Beach Blanket Babylon,' as well as music writing credits for Oprah Winfrey's production of 'The Color Purple,' the multi-talented Ledisi has plenty of performing arts experience that she'll bring to the Reprise Theatre Company's fall production of 'Once On This Island.' The "powerhouse belter" (Los Angeles Times, 4.28.08) will play the featured part of Mother Earth in this production, which runs at UCLA's Freud Playhouse from September 2-14.

From October 14th through the 19th, Ledisi will showcase her jazz chops at the Blue Note in NYC as a special guest with the Count Basie Orchestra. Ledisi once said she had two dreams when she first embarked on her singing career, "The first was to be nominated for a Grammy. The second was to someday sing with the Count Basie Orchestra. Check and check" (Bay Area News Group, 12.27.07).

Watch her salute to Ella Fitzgerald here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAyv4nQYhxk

Ledisi will also release her first holiday album, 'It's Christmas,' this fall (September 23rd on Verve). Featuring four original songs and eight reinvented classics, the new album delivers Ledisi's signature sound, "imbued with soulful fervor and shaped by breathtaking technique" (New York Daily News, 2.15.08).