Brianna Thomas is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

singer, vocalist, composer, songwriter, band leader, and percussionist. She was born and raised in

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria ...

, United States. She made her singing debut at the age of six. She is the daughter of drummer and vocalist Charlie Thomas. She is known as being one of the best young straight ahead young jazz singers, says music critic and author

Will Friedwald Will Friedwald (born September 16, 1961) is an American author and music critic. He has written for newspapers that include the ''Wall Street Journal'', ''New York Times'', ''Village Voice'', '' Newsday'', '' New York Observer'', and ''New Yor ...

. She is known to bring together various forms of American music from bluegrass to jazz in to an original hybrid of jazz/funk/rock and soul. Her voice is said to be strong and her range huge. She incorporates rare music in her repertoire of early female blues and jazz pioneers such as

Bessie Smith Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer widely renowned during the Jazz Age. Nicknamed the " Empress of the Blues", she was the most popular female blues singer of the 1930s. Inducted into the Rock and ...

Victoria Spivey Victoria Regina Spivey (October 15, 1906 – October 3, 1976), sometimes known as Queen Victoria, was an American blues singer and songwriter. During a recording career that spanned 40 years, from 1926 to the mid-1960s, she worked with Louis A ...

Ma Rainey Gertrude "Ma" Rainey ( Pridgett; April 26, 1886 – December 22, 1939) was an American blues singer and influential early blues recording artist. Dubbed the "Mother of the Blues", she bridged earlier vaudeville and the authentic expression of s ...

Ethel Waters Ethel Waters (October 31, 1896 – September 1, 1977) was an American singer and actress. Waters frequently performed jazz, swing, and pop music on the Broadway stage and in concerts. She began her career in the 1920s singing blues. Her no ...

Mamie Smith Mamie Smith (née Robinson; May 26, 1891 – September 16, 1946) was an American vaudeville singer, dancer, pianist, and actress. As a vaudeville singer she performed in multiple styles, including jazz and blues. In 1920, she entered blues histor ...

, and

Ida Cox Ida Cox (born Ida M. Prather, February 26, 1888 or 1896 – November 10, 1967) was an American singer and vaudeville performer, best known for her blues performances and recordings. She was billed as "The Uncrowned Queen of the Blues".Harriso ...

. All About Jazz said of her 2015 debut album, ''You Must Believe in Love,'' “Brianna Thomas is the complete package. Through this music she exhibits emotional depth, to-die-for scat skills, incredible pitch control and shading, strong songwriting skills, intuitively elastic phrasing, soulful bearing, and a great range.” She is compared to

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "Jazz royalty, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine ...

Betty Carter Betty Carter (born Lillie Mae Jones; May 16, 1929 – September 26, 1998) was an American jazz singer known for her improvisational technique, scatting and other complex musical abilities that demonstrated her vocal talent and imaginative inter ...

and

Dianne Reeves Dianne Elizabeth Reeves (born October 23, 1956) is an American jazz singer. Biography Dianne Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan, into a musical family. Her father sang, her mother played trumpet, her uncle is bassist Charles Burrell, and h ...

, singing ballad standards, cabaret music,

Scat singing In vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. In scat singing, the singer improvises melodies and rhythms using the voice as an instrument rather than a speaking medium. ...

, and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

. She specializes in the 30s-style swing music. She is a Jazz at Lincoln Center regular. She is stated as being a down-to-earth Midwestern musician, embracing many flavors in her artistry from cha-cha, Afro Cuban,

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

, swing,

ballads A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

jazz standards Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

, classic

swing music Swing music is a style of jazz that developed in the United States during the late 1920s and early 1930s. It became nationally popular from the mid-1930s. The name derived from its emphasis on the off-beat, or nominally weaker beat. Swing bands ...

Early life

Brianna grew up around music and remembers at an early age around two going to clubs where her father would perform and rehearsals in their home. She made her singing debut at the age six doing a duet with her father Charlie “CJ” Thomas, singing "What A Wonderful World". In her teens she toured Europe with a Big Band, and by 16 she performed at the Montreux, North Sea and Umbria Jazz Festivals. She has performed throughout her childhood at local and regional events. When she was eight years of age she won her first of first-place trophies from various district and regional talent shows. At the age of eight to ten she was performing gigs at banquets, black tie affairs and a guest at local radio stations. She worked with the distinguished jazz educator Mary Jo Papich and toured Europe with the Peoria Jazz All-Stars.

Career

Thomas has performed with many well known jazz artists such as Clark Terry, Wycliffe Gordon, Houston Person, Mulgrew Miller,

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Award ...

, Russell Malone, The Legendary

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

Orchestra,

Kurt Elling Kurt Elling (born November 2, 1967) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Rockford, Illinois, Rockford, Elling became interested in music through his father, who was Kapellmeister at a Lutheran chur ...

, Michael Feinsten, T.K. Blue,

, Fred Anderson,

Von Freeman Earle Lavon "Von" Freeman Sr. (October 3, 1923 – August 11, 2012) was an American hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist. Biography Born in Chicago, Illinois, Freeman as a young child was exposed to jazz. His father, George, a city policeman, was a c ...

, the Barber Brothers. Recently, Thomas performed with educator, performer and Wynton Marsalis. She participated with Wynton Marsalis as part of a lecture series at Harvard University called his “Meet Me at the Crossroads”. She teaches Jazz in American history and today with Jazz For Young People Program that educates students in New York City Schools. She has performed at many international music festivals and venues; such as Montreux, North Sea,

Umbria Jazz Festival The Umbria Jazz Festival is one of the most important jazz festivals in the world and has been held annually since 1973, usually in July, in Perugia, and surrounding cities of the region of Umbria Italy. Furthermore, the Umbria Jazz Winter Festi ...

, and venues in the Bahamas, and in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, Switzerland. She was resident artist for the 2001 and 2002 for the Betty Carter Jazz Ahead Programs an international artist-in-residency program. A program that brought together a select group of jazz musicians to perform original compositions at the Kennedy Center. While with the "Jazz Ahead' program Thomas worked with jazz educators and performers such as vocalist

Carmen Lundy Carmen Latretta Lundy (born November 1, 1954) is an American jazz singer. She has been performing for three decades, with a focus on original material. She has been positively compared with Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. Lu ...

Winard Harper Hiram Winard Harper (born June 4, 1962) is an American jazz drummer. Career Harper played in the 1980s with Dexter Gordon, Johnny Griffin, and with Betty Carter for four years. While working with Carter he met Wycliffe Gordon, with whom Harper ...

, and Nathan Davis. In 2006, Brianna Thomas made her New York City debut performance at the Women in Jazz Festival. Which was held at Dizzy’s Club – Jazz at Lincoln Center. In 2006 she was made a guest appearance at the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

In 2007, she moved to New York City and attended the School of Jazz (The New School) for Jazz and Contemporary Music. At the New School she studied with Richard Harper, and

Kenneth Kamal Scott Kenneth Kamal Scott (3 March 1940 – 1 February 2015) was an American singer, dancer and actor, whose sixty-five-year career had included numerous achievements in a diverse array of genres and settings, including Broadway, jazz, pop, opera, bal ...

. In New York she met pianist and swing band leader, Gordon Webster, where she became a featured vocalist and recorded with him. Thomas has performed around the world at various venues from New York to California, Canada, Korea, etc. She has performed at the Sochi Jazz Festival in Sochi. Performed in Russia and Bern, Switzerland. She has performed with many musicians such as;

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948–51), Duke ...

Curtis Fuller Curtis DuBois Fuller (December 15, 1932May 8, 2021) was an American jazz trombonist. He was a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and contributed to many classic jazz recordings. Early life Fuller was born in Detroit on December 15, 1932. ...

Wycliffe Gordon Wycliffe A. Gordon (born May 29, 1967) is an American jazz trombonist, arranger, composer, band leader, and music educator at the collegiate-conservatory level. Gordon also sings and plays didgeridoo, trumpet, soprano trombone, tuba, and piano ...

Victor Goines Victor Louis Goines (born August 6, 1961) is a jazz saxophonist and clarinetist who has served as president and chief executive officer of Jazz St. Louis since September 2022. From 2000 to 2007, he was director of the jazz program at Juilliard. ...

Junior Mance Julian Clifford Mance, Jr. (October 10, 1928 – January 17, 2021), known as Junior Mance, was an American jazz pianist and composer. Biography Early life (1928–1947) Mance was born in Evanston, Illinois. When he was five years old, Mance st ...

, Charles Tolliver,

Reggie Workman Reginald "Reggie" Workman (born June 26, 1937 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American avant-garde jazz and hard bop double bassist, recognized for his work with both John Coltrane and Art Blakey. Career Early in his career, Workman wo ...

Frank Wess Frank Wellington Wess (January 4, 1922 – October 30, 2013) was an American jazz saxophonist and flutist. In addition to his extensive solo work, Wess is remembered for his time in Count Basie's band from the early 1950s into the 1960s. Critic ...

, Paul West, Rene Marie, Fred Anderson,

, Jimmy Owens,

Norman Simmons Norman Simmons (1915–2004) was a DNA research pioneer."Obituaries". ''Harvard Dental Bulletin'' 10(4): 28. Fall 2004-Winter 2005. Simmons worked with Elkan Blout on proteins and polypeptides and was also recognized for isolating a structural ...

Art Baron Arthur John Baron (born January 5, 1950) is an American jazz trombonist. He also plays didgeridoo, conch shell, penny-whistle, alto and bass recorder, and tuba. Career overview Baron is an alumnus of the Berklee College of Music. He joined ...

, Ulysses Owens, The Amigos Band, and

Houston Person Houston Person (born November 10, 1934) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. He received the ...

Dominick Farinacci Dominick Farinacci (born March 3, 1983) is an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and big band leader. He is currently signed to the Mack Avenue label. Farinacci was one of eighteen artists worldwide invited to be a part of the inaugural class of t ...

(trumpeter), Nick Grinder (Trombone),

Tivon Pennicott Tivon Pennicott is an American composer, orchestrator and tenor saxophonist. Of Jamaican parentage, he grew up in Marietta, Georgia, but moved to Miami, Florida, where he studied music at the University of Miami. On a visit in Los Angeles, he met a ...

(tenor sax), Greg Lewis (organist), Kyle Poole (Drums), Ethan Mann (Guitar), Yi - Ting Chiang (Violin), Marvin Sewell (guitar), Ryan Berg (bass), Malik Washington (drums), Russell Malone (guitarist),

(vocalist),

(drummer),

Nathan Davis (saxophonist) Nathan Tate Davis (February 15, 1937 – April 8, 2018) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist who played the tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, and flute. He is known for his work with Eric Dolphy, Kenny Clarke, Ray Charl ...

Catherine Russell (singer) Catherine Russell (born 1956) is an American jazz and blues singer. She is best known for her 2016 album ''Harlem on My Mind''. Biography Early life Her father was Luis Russell, a Panamanian-born "pianist and leader of one of the most impr ...

, Greg Lewis (pianist), and alto saxophonist

Patrick Bartley Patrick Bartley (24 March 1909 – 25 June 1956) was a British coal miner, civil servant and politician. He served as Labour Party Member of Parliament for Chester-le-Street from 1950 until his early death. Mining career Bartley was born in Wash ...

(alto saxophonist), Dion Parson/21st Century Band,

Fred Anderson (musician) Fred Anderson (March 22, 1929 – June 24, 2010) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist who was based in Chicago, Illinois. Anderson's playing was rooted in the swing music and hard bop idioms, but he also incorporated innovations from free jaz ...

(saxophone), and James Hurt (piano). The Brianna Thomas Quartet musicians include; Conun Pappas (piano), Rob Adkins (bass), John Davis (drums), Linton Smith (trumpet), Joe Wiggan (taps), Greg Ward (alto), Riza Printup (harp), Brianna Thomas (vocals). In 2009, she won the New York’s Jazzmobile Vocal Competition “Best of the Best”. In 2014, Thomas was a musical ambassador for the "American Music Abroad" program, touring South East Asia. In October 2018, she appeared at the 14th

Richmond Folk Festival (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

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. Thomas teaches 'Jazz in American History' and 'Today for Jazz For Young People' programs, which educates students in New York City schools.

Awards

* 1996 African-American Hall of Fame - Peoria, Illinois * 2009, The

Jazzmobile Jazzmobile, Inc. is based in New York City, and was founded in 1964 by Daphne Arnstein, an arts patron and founder of the Harlem Cultural Council and Dr. William "Billy" Taylor. It is a multifaceted, outreach organization committed to bringing "A ...

in New York * 2001, Down Beat magazine award "High School Jazz Vocalist of the Year".

Discography

* 2014 - ''You Must Believe in Love''; her debut CD on (Sound on Purpose Records), with Allyn Johnson, piano; Yasushi Nakamura, bass; Ulysses Owens, drums, Riza Printup, harp; Marcus Printup, trumpet/flugelhorn; Wycliffe Gordon, trombone. Produced by Ulysses Owens Jr.

References

External links

Jazz at Lincoln Center with Brianna ThomasBrianna Thomas Talks: Going Beyond Categorization
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Brianna Living people African Americans in New York City American blues singers American women jazz singers African-American women singers American jazz singers Scat singers Smooth jazz singers Singers from Illinois People from Peoria, Illinois American rhythm and blues singers Jazz musicians from Illinois Year of birth missing (living people)