Interview: Cheyenne Elliott of A CELEBRATION OF DIONNE WARWICK

Cheyenne Elliott was a preteen clad in a sparkly Limited Too garment when her grandmother, Dionne Warwick, called her up onstage for the first time. Flashback to the mid-2000s at an outdoor summer concert in the New York Metropolitan Area, the pair sang Warwick’s poignant classic, “That’s What Friends Are For.” Since its 1985 release, the song has resonated with generations, performed at grade-school graduations and played as background music to slideshows depicting precious kindergarten memories. 

For Elliott, the performance wasn’t just a sentimental memory. It was situational poetry, marking a pivotal moment in her life at a tender age. Though admittedly “extremely nervous” before taking the stage before a sea of thousands of spectators that golden evening, it was a performance that cemented Elliott’s love of singing and one in which she conquered fear. While it helped to have her mom, Lisa, whom she credits to discovering her vocal abilities, and her friends cheering her on in the audience, (she could have very well been singing to them!) Elliott applied the invaluable advice Warwick – whom she affectionately calls Grammy – instilled in her. 

“She gave me encouragement to not have any doubts in my abilities and to not worry about having a lot of shoes to fill,” she recalled. “[She would say], ‘You don’t need to be anyone but Cheyenne.” 

For a woman who penned lyrics about being brave enough to display unabashed vulnerability in the form of bursting into tears before a man who broke her heart in “Walk on By,” perhaps no one knows courage like Warwick. When Elliott’s nerves subsided, her stage fright vanished, and she entered a very natural state: the stage became her niche and the awe-struck crowd her relief. After a successful show, Elliott continued to perform alongside the R&B, soul and gospel legend. The little girl with crooning ambitions is now Warwick’s opening act. 

“I really grasp what her legacy is and what she’s brought to the music industry. She’s impacted so many people’s lives,” Elliott told BroadwayWorld in a phone interview. She added that concertgoers have poured their hearts out regaling her of tales of choosing Warwick’s songs as the first dance as man and wife at weddings and listening to her records to help them navigate a loss. 

As Elliott continued to join Grammy on the road, Warwick asked her to perform a rendition of “Love Will Find a Way,” a duet that Warwick had recorded with her cousin, Whitney Houston, following the incendiary icon’s passing in 2012. 

“I recorded that song when I was maybe 13. She never treated me like I was not capable of doing something regardless of age, and always encouraged me,” Elliott recalled of Warwick. “She has never been one to shy away from asking me to step into my own as a performer. She taught me everything: enunciation, how to work a stage, crowd work, breathe work."

Through the years, Elliott has released several singles including "Let There Be Love," a duet with Warwick. Her dance hit, "With You," peaked at No. 16 on Billboard’s Dance Chart. Like her grandmother, and all great performers, she likes to portray a work of art. 

"She has a 50-year career," said Elliott. "When she performs, she paints an interesting visual.”

‘Déjà vu’ at New Jersey Arts Icon Awards Gala

This month, Elliott will be turning 30 – an important milestone in her life, she says, as she ushers in a new decade where she envisions herself a seasoned version of the young girl on stage that summer night nearly two decades ago. On Sunday, Sept. 22, she’ll be celebrating the life and legacy of Warwick at the New Jersey Arts Icon Awards Gala staged at the Bell Theater in Holmdel, New Jersey -- not far from where she had that unforgettable first performance. 

The concert, aptly called, “What the World Needs Now: A Celebration of Dionne Warwick,” will be situated in the heart of the Garden State. The venue is apropos, not only in fond remembrance of Elliott’s life-altering show, but paying homage to Warwick’s East Orange roots. 

“She’s a Jersey girl,” said Elliott. “It feels like a hometown performance. She’s so active in the art world and music world that exists in New Jersey.”

Joining Elliott will be special guests Deborah Cox, Grammy nominee and star of the new musical “The Bodyguard;” Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child; Remember Jones; and Nova Y. Payton. The star-studded gala will pay tribute to Warwick’s iconic songbook which will come to life with the American Pops Orchestra under the baton of conductor Luke Frazier. PBS will be onsite to film the concert for television broadcasting later, which is anticipated to be the “starriest gala in the state” this season, per Axelrod Performing Arts Center’s executive artistic director Andrew DePrisco.

The concert is part of Axelrod’s inaugural New Jersey Arts Icon Awards Gala which pays homage to the Garden State’s musical legends. The show is timed with Warwick’s induction into the 2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She’s also the recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2023 Kennedy Center Award, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and induction into the 2013 New Jersey Hall of Fame. 

Warwick’s songs a part of this Sunday’s setlist will include “What the World Needs Now,” “Walk on By,” “Alfie,” “Do You Know the Way to San Jose,” “I Say A Little Prayer,” (which is immortalized in 1997’s “My Best Friend’s Wedding”) and “I’ll Never Love This Way Again,” a tune Elliott says tugs at her heartstrings. 

“Every time she performs it, I get emotional,” she said. “It’s a really emotional song. The woman is super woman, and she sounds so incredible to this day.”

In a full-circle moment, 12 students from the junior division ages 7-13 of Axelrod Performing Arts Academy’s musical theater program will sing “That’s What Friends Are For” with Warwick at the gala – inspiring a new generation of hopeful songbirds. 

“Everyone finds their voice and chooses their delivery,” said Elliott. “I’m thankful from a young age she embedded that in me.”

VIP tickets are $750 and include a pre-concert reception, priority seating and post-concert meet-and-greet with the artists. Premium seats are $350 and include pre-concert reception, preferred seating and post-concert dessert reception. Standard tickets are $250, which include pre-concert reception. Go here to secure them or call 732-531-9106, ext. 14. Photos: Cheyenne Elliott Archives.

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