97.9 The Beat Featured Video
CLOSE

There are very few singers on the contemporary scene who have a unique, instantly identifiable vocal sound; there are even fewer who have the stylistic range to encompass both Jazz and R&B in their performances. Grammy-nominated Soul/Jazz diva Maysa, who celebrates her 20th year as a solo recording artist this year, marks that achievement with her new album BACK 2 LOVE, a tour-de-force that validates her status as the greatest Soul-Jazz singer of her generation.

 

Maysa Leak was born and raised in Baltimore, MD and knew by the time she was six that she would be a musician.

“I was six years old when my mom took me to see Purlie,” she recalls. “When Melba Moore came on stage and sang her heart out, I knew at that moment I wanted to make people feel the way she made me feel.”

Maysa graduated from Morgan State University with a degree in classical performance, meeting Stevie Wonder while a student. Upon graduating she moved to North Hollywood to join Wonder’s Wonderlove group, with whom she performed for a year, appearing on the Jungle Fever soundtrack and such television shows as Oprah and The Tonight Show.

In the early Nineties, Maysa auditioned over the phone to become the new lead singer of the acclaimed British Jazz/Funk/R&B band Incognito, moving to London for four-and-a-half years. She has appeared on over nine Incognito recordings and continues to appear as featured vocalist with them from time to time

“BACK 2 LOVE represents the fact that I’m ready to get back to having a personal life with a very special man in my life. I have worked hard on my career so I could take care of us (my son and I). My son is almost 16 and I think he is old enough to have a mom who is going to be dating and possibly married. I am ready to meet Prince Charming. The music is exactly who I am.” 

Like BlackAmericaWeb.com on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

 

See Maysa’s New Video Here!  was originally published on blackamericaweb.com