Fantasia, Philip Bailey & More Set for NJPAC's JAZZ AND SOUL, 11/13

Hear Fantasia, Philip Bailey, José James, Jazzmeia Horn and the Christian McBride Big Band at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC)'s TD James Moody Democracy of Jazz Festival Thursday, November 13, 2014 at 8PM in the Prudential Hall. Get your tickets now at NJPAC.org or 888.GO.NJPAC (888.466.5722)

Jazz meets soul at the TD James Moody Democracy of Jazz Festival in an electrifying lineup of Grammy winners Fantasia and Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind & Fire and one of today's hottest jazz singers, José James, along with the Christian McBride Big Band and Jazzmeia Horn, winner of the 2013 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition.

Gritty blues, songs drenched with emotion, and lush, romantic music are all part of Fantasia's repertoire, which includes the hits "Lose to Win," "When I See U" and "Truth Is." Millions of music lovers around the world discovered Bailey through his successful work as a core member, writer, musician and co-lead vocalist with Maurice White in the legendary group Earth, Wind & Fire.

Fantasia is an American Idol winner and 8X Grammy Nominee! Fantasia Barrino stepped onto the American Idol stage and won top honors. After wowing television audiences with her vocal talent, the North Carolina native released her debut album, Free Yourself, which featured as its first single, "I Believe," a song that made her the first artist in Billboard history to debut at #1 on the Hot 100 chart. Her second single, "Truth Is," would later hold the #1 spot on the charts for 14 weeks. During 2006, she released herNew York Times bestselling memoir, Life Is Not a Fairytale, starred as her younger self in the Lifetime movie of the same name and by year's end, released her second album, entitled, simply, Fantasia, which included the hit single, "When I See U." What followed were the coveted role of Celie in Broadway's The Color Purple (for which she won a Theater World Award), a guest spot on The Simpsons and a two-season run of the VH1 reality series, Fantasia For Real. During the summer of 2011, she released her third album, Back to Me, which featured the Grammy-winning single, "Bittersweet." To date, she's sold nearly three million records and 1.5 million digital tracks, domestically.

Philip Bailey is one of America's best R&B, soul, gospel and funk singer, songwriter and percussionist, best known as one of the longtime members of the legendary R&B band Earth, Wind & Fire. Noted for his four-octave vocal range and distinctive falsetto register, Bailey has won seven Grammy Awards. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame as a member of Earth, Wind & Fire. Bailey was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame for his work with the band. Bailey has released several solo albums. Chinese Wall from 1985, which received a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male, included the global hit, "Easy Lover", a duet with Phil Collins. "Easy Lover" won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Overall Performance in a Video in 1985 and was Grammy nominated for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals.

McBride is considered a virtuoso, and is one of the most recorded musicians of his generation; he has appeared on more than 300 recordings as a sideman. He is also a 3-time Grammy award winner.
For over 20 years, McBride has appeared in numerous musical settings with just about any musician imaginable in the jazz as well as R&B and pop worlds. From playing with the likes of Milt Jackson, Roy Haynes, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Pat Metheny; to playing with and/or arranging for the likes of Isaac Hayes, Chaka Khan, Lalah Hathaway, Sting and the legendary James Brown-what has always been unique about McBride is his versatility.

In addition to his work in the neo-soul arena with The Roots, D'Angelo, Queen Latifah and others, the Philadelphia native has also led his own ensembles: The Christian McBride Band, A Christian McBride Situation and his most recent group, Inside Straight (fresh off their critically acclaimed 2009 effort, Kind of Brown). There are many sides to the musical persona of Christian McBride, and The Good Feeling has him realizing another one: as the leader, arranger and conductor of his big band.

McBride's first foray into the world of big band composing and arranging dates back to 1995, when he was commissioned by Jazz At Lincoln Center to write Bluesin' in Alphabet City, featured on The Good Feeling and originally debuted by Wynton Marsalis & The Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra. Since that time he has composed a number of pieces for larger ensembles including The Movement Revisited, a four movement suite dedicated to four of the major figures of the civil rights movement: Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. At McBride's core is The Good Feeling, his first full-fledged big band recording, and it's presented in a truly impressive fashion.

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