Carrera Productions: Mavis Staples at Harris Center for the Arts

She and her family sang for Martin Luther King, Jr., Bob Dylan proposed marriage to her, and David Bowie and Prince were both huge fans. Grammy Award-winner Mavis Staples is living, breathing history, having continuously crossed musical genres like no one since Ray Charles. Weaving herself into the very fabric of gospel, soul, folk, pop, R&B, blues, rock, and hip hop over the last 60 years, this iconic singer has sung through so many changes—from the civil rights movement and the beloved Staple Singers, to today’s world and her illustrious solo career (the documentary MAVIS! recently premiered on HBO). There is no persona; she is, simply and untouchably, Mavis.