Music Bloodline

Cassandra Wilson

Smoky-voiced contemporary jazz singer who has also crossed into funk, blues, and even rap.

Biography

Cassandra Wilson was one of the top jazz singers of the '90s, a vocalist blessed with a distinctive and flexible voice who was not afraid to take chances. She recorded her first album as a leader in 1985 and, subsequently, began to fashion records that furthered her artistic career while still aligning well with trends in popular music. Glamoured, released in 2003, posed a different kind of challenge; half the material was composed by Wilson herself. Unwilling to stand still, she gently explored hip-hop techniques for 2006's Thunderbird. ~ Scott Yanow