CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT IS PRECISELY
WHAT YOU’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR
Hooray and hallelujah! Long before her CDs Ghost Song and Dreams and Daggers — a live double-CD set that won the 2018 Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album — I have always been a fan of jazz vocalist and song interpreter extraordinaire Cécile McLorin Salvant. But seeing her live six times now has not only cemented my opinion that this is the most exciting thing in all music — not just jazz — to come along in decades. She is this generation’s most mesmerizing, fascinating, and supreme songstress. Yes, she has that remarkably distinctive voice, but it’s supported by a personality which is an amalgam of combinations: old soul and young upstart; waggish and serious; and controlled and improvisational.
At UCLA’s Royce Hall on May 8, 2025, you will get a rare opportunity to see her in SoCal; this is the last stop of an incredible U.S. tour before she heads to Europe. I saw her at Carnegie Hall on March 27, and believe me when I say that it was THE greatest concert of my lifetime. She will restore your faith in original singer/songwriters who value great songs and storytelling.
And can we talk about fascinating material? Salvant’s natural curiosity for the history of American music and the connections between jazz, vaudeville, blues, and folk music, informs her unique performance style, which often includes rarely recorded, forgotten songs with strong stories. So, along with standards, sharp original pieces, and lesser-known titles by well-known composers, this savvy singer — in her own idiosyncratic style — brings to our attention overlooked material as well.
With her extraordinary combo, Salvant will be singing from all of her albums, but the concerts I have seen were rich in standards. For this performance, she will be joined by bassist Yasushi Nakamura, drummer Kyle Poole and Sullivan Fortner, who is hands-down the most exciting jazz pianist on the scene. I was lucky enough to catch his trio at Small’s in NYC last year, and just seeing him alone is worth the price of admission. Do not, do not, do not miss this show.
Also, the French-Haitian Miami-born 35-year-old plays piano, and sings in French and Spanish. So while the program will be announced from the stage, expect bits and pieces of everything. Picking up where Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald left off, honoring but not imitating them, Cécile McLorin Salvant — fearless and a little shy — isn’t the next best thing; she is the best.
photos by Shawn Michael Jones
CAP UCLA presentsCécile McLorin SalvantThursday, May 8 at 8 p.m.Royce Hall, UCLA10745 Dickson Ct, Los Angeles, CA 90095for tickets, visit Cécile McLorin Salvant
website: Cécile McLorin Salvant
