“I actually started the whole project some years ago with a live debut at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels. The focus was mainly on my favorite period of Billie Holiday, which was the late-50s Verve recordings, with essentially a small version of the Count Basie band.” YearsWholeFocusPeriodsBandProjectsLateYears AgoMy FavoriteVersionsHolidayDebutBrussels Author:Jose James
“I feel like, in many ways, Billie Holiday's still very under-appreciated as an artist. People focus on her voice, and all of the very recognizable vocal things that she does, which are great. But I wanted to, with this project, start the conversation again about her as a radical feminist, as a civil rights activist - taking a stance. And also just [her] being a non-conformist.” PeopleWayFeelsDoeStillsWantedArtistVoiceFocusRightsConversationProjectsFeministCivil RightsRadicalHolidayActivistAppreciatedVocalStanceConformistRadical FeministNon Conformist Author:Jose James
“I also tried to focus on songs that Billie Holiday wrote, songs that she had a hand in shaping, like "Strange Fruit"; songs that were written for her or songs that she wrote herself, like "Fine and Mellow" or "God Bless The Child."” ChildrenHandsSongFocusWrittenStrangeFineFruitHolidayBlessGod BlessMellow Author:Jose James
“When I start working on a new album, I kind of stop listening to a lot of outside stuff just so I can kind of focus.” KindI CanStuffFocusListeningAlbums Author:Jose James