Vanessa Rubin

Vanessa Rubin
Background information
Born	(1957-03-14) March 14, 1957 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Genres	Jazz, R&B
Occupation	Singer
Years active	1980s–present
Labels	Telarc, RCA, Novus

Vanessa Rubin (born March 14, 1957) is an American jazz vocalist.

Biography

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, to parents from Trinidad and Louisiana, Rubin grew up in a musical household. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from Ohio State University. A standing ovation while she performed "God Bless the Child" at the Miss Black Central Ohio Contest convinced her to pursue a career as a singer.

Rubin returned to Cleveland, where she began singing in clubs and hotels. She formed a band of organ, guitar, vibes and drums. After moving to New York City in 1982, she performed at Sweet Basil and at the Village Vanguard with the Pharoah Sanders Quartet. She then began to study with pianist Barry Harris at his Jazz Cultural Theatre.

She has worked with Kenny Barron, Lionel Hampton, the Mercer Ellington Orchestra, Cecil Bridgewater, Etta Jones, Toots Thielemans, Steve Turre, Cedar Walton, and Grover Washington, Jr. More recently she has completed international tours with Herbie Hancock, the Woody Herman Orchestra, and the Jazz Crusaders.

Rubin has been described as "an impressive song stylist with a Midas touch for challenging material", and her 2019 tribute to Tadd Dameron, The Dream Is You: Vanessa Rubin Sings Tadd Dameron, was nominated for the 51st NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Album.

Discography

Year	Title	Genre	Label	Billboard
1992	Soul Eyes	Jazz	Novus/RCA	9
1993	Pastiche			10
1994	I'm Glad There Is You: A Tribute to Carmen McRae			22
1995	Vanessa Rubin Sings
1997	New Horizons	R&B, Jazz	RCA	48
1999	Language of Love	Jazz	Telarc
2001	Girl Talk
2013	Vanessa Rubin & Don Braden Full Circle		Creative Perspective
2019	The Dream Is You: Vanessa Rubin Sings Tadd Dameron		Nibur