Queen Esther (artist)
This article is an autobiography or has been extensively edited by the subject or by someone connected to the subject. (March 2016) |
Queen Esther | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Born | Atlanta, Georgia |
Genres | Jazz, blues, pop |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Years active | 1994–present |
Labels | El Recordings |
Website | queen-esther |
Queen Esther is an American actor, playwright, musician, producer, and songwriter.[1][2]
Early life
Queen Esther was raised in Atlanta, Georgia and Charleston, South Carolina. She grew up in the Church of God in Christ (C.O.G.I.C.), soloing as a vocalist in the choir at an early age.[3] Both of her parents are from South Carolina's Lowcountry and were a part of The Great Migration as well as the New Great Migration, settling the family in Atlanta, Georgia in the 1970s. Queen Esther's mother taught her how to read before the age of five. She was identified as gifted and talented in kindergarten, receiving acceleration in English and creative writing as a part of gifted education while in grade school.[4][5]
While attending Northside High School in Atlanta, a
Of her influences musically, Queen Esther said, "I can’t ever remember not hearing that twang, that dissonance. It was in the air. That blue-ing of the note, that was a way of life. That’s as true for me as it is for any other Southerner. It’s not the kind of thing you think about. It just is."[7]
While an undergraduate in Austin, Queen Esther performed frequently on the local cabaret and theater scene in productions directed by
In 1994, Queen Esther completed a BA in Liberal Arts with a concentration in screenwriting from The New School in Greenwich Village. Her work led to creative collaborations in neo-vaudeville, alt-theater, various alt-rock configurations, (neo) swing bands,[9] trip-hop DJs, spoken word performances, jazz combos, jam bands, various blues configurations, original Off-Broadway plays and musicals,[10] experimental music/art noise and performance art.[11]
Career
Queen Esther is a member of guitarist
After forming the avant-blues duo Hoosegow with Elliott Sharp and releasing the album Mighty (Homestead),[14] Queen Esther introduced Mr. Sumlin to guitarist Elliot Sharp, which led to recording sessions and several European tours for Mr. Sumlin with Sharp's blues collective Terraplane.
Queen Esther's music projects include The Hot Five, The Black Rose of Texas featuring Queen Esther, Kat Edmonson and Synead Cidney Nichols on vocals with Cindy Cashdollar on pedal steel guitar, and various configurations of her Black Americana and jazz collective, which includes drummer Steven Williams, bassist Hilliard Greene, lap steel guitarist Raphael McGregor, guitarist Jeff McLaughlin and multi-string instrumentalist Boo Reiners.[15]
Performances and recordings
Queen Esther started her label EL Recordings in 2004 when she released her first Black Americana album Talkin' Fishbowl Blues. She signed an admin publishing deal with Bug Music in 2006[16] (now owned by BMG Rights Management)[17] and has released five self-produced albums.[18]
As a vocalist, Queen Esther has performed and/or recorded with Speedball Baby, Mona’s Hot Five, Eyal Vilner Big Band, Burnt Sugar Arkestra, Gordon Webster, The Hot Toddies,
Performances include
A member of the 2023 Joe's Pub Working Group,[25] the 2023 Keychange US Talent Development Program [26] and a 2022 National Arts Club Artist Fellow,[27] Queen Esther received a grant from the 2022 New York City Women's Fund for Media, Music and Theater for her upcoming alt-Americana album Blackbirding.[28]
Theater, Solo Performance and Cabaret
In 1996, Queen Esther joined
After seeing
Her second solo show, the semi-autobiographical Queen Esther: Unemployed Superstar, was performed at Tribeca Playhouse, The New York International Fringe Festival,[31] The Diva Series at George Street Playhouse[32] and the New Work Now! New Performance Now! series at The Public Theater, culminating in a five-week sold-out run at Joe's Pub.[33]
In the aftermath of the 9/11 disaster, Queen Esther hosted and performed in The Tribeca Playhouse Stagedoor Canteen, a weekly hour-long USO-style variety show created and directed by playwright and theater director
In 2002, Queen Esther received a Best Actress AUDELCO award nomination for her work in George C. Wolfe's new musical Harlem Song.
Adapted from newly discovered Harlem-based short stories from the 1930s by Zora Neale Hurston and augmented by Billie Holiday's lost classics, Queen Esther wrote the libretto for The Billie Holiday Project, performing it initially at Lenox Lounge for the Harlem Jazz Shrines[37] and developing it further in performance workshops with Dixon Place and The Field.[38] In April 2012, the show received a performance residency at The Apollo Theater's Music Cafe and featured The Hot Five with a cast that included Queen Esther, Francesca Harper, Charles L. Wallace and Keith L. Thomas.[39]
Queen Esther partnered with The Francesca Harper Project to further explore Billie Holiday's body of work through movement, sound and vision in Billie Holiday: Deconstructed, a theatrical performance that premiered at the Harlem Arts Festival in June, 2012.[40]
Queen Esther was a 2021 New Perspectives Theater Company Short Play Lab Member. Her play That's What Happened was featured in their 2021 Short Play Festival.[41] She is a playwright in residence with the 2022 - 2024 WP Theater "Pipeline" PlayLAB. Her full-length play The Tears of a Megyn premieres Off-Broadway in the spring of 2024.[42]
Discography
As leader
- Rona (EL Recordings, 2023)
- Gild The Black Lily (EL Recordings, 2021)
- The Other Side (EL Recordings, 2014)
- What is Love? (EL Recordings, 2010)
- Talkin' Fishbowl Blues (EL Recordings, 2004)[43]
As member
With Hoosegow
- Mighty (Homestead, 1996) with Elliott Sharp
With 52nd Street Blues Project
- Blues & Grass (Chesky, 2004)
With J. C. Hopkins Biggish Band
- Underneath a Brooklyn Moon (Tigerlily, 2005)
As guest
With Elliott Sharp and
- Electric Willie: A Tribute to Willie Dixon (Yellowbird [Germany], 2010)
With The Harlem Experiment
- The Harlem Experiment (Ropeadope, 2007)
With James Blood Ulmer
- No Escape from the Blues: The Electric Lady Sessions (Hyena, 2003)[44]
References
- ^ "The Curmudgeon: Afro-Americana: Putting the Twang Back into Black Music". Pastemagazine.com. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
- ^ "WP Theater PlayLAB Playwrights 2022 - 2024". WPTheater.com. 1 May 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ^ "Queen Esther interview (February 2005)". Earcandymag.com. 2005-02-10. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Queen Esther interview (February 2005)". soulcountry.net. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ "When The World Is On Fire: The Black Roots of American Folk Music (January 12, 2021)". medium.com. 2023-01-12. Retrieved 2023-09-09.
- ^ a b c "CONCERT HISTORY 1980". Stonecityattractions.com. Archived from the original on 2013-10-29.
- ^ "Queen Esther interview (February 2005)". soulcountry.net. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ a b Westergaard, Sean. "Queen Esther - Music Biography, Credits and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "J.C. Hopkins Biggish Band". npr.com. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ "Harlem Song: An A Train Through History (August 2002)". The New York Times. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ "Queen Esther: Reclaiming Her Country (January 2022)". soulcountry.net. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ "Preview: James "Blood" Ulmer's Black Rock Experience - Stage - Night & Day - the Prague Post". Archived from the original on October 18, 2013. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
- ^ "This Rock n' Roll BlackGrrl's High Life".
- ^ Milkowski, Bill. "Jazz Albums: MightyElliot Sharp and Queen Esther - By Bill Milkowski". Jazztimes.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-26. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Queen Esther interview (February 2005)". soulcountry.net. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
- ^ "Writers & Artists | BMG Chrysalis US". Bmgchrysalis.com. Retrieved 2012-07-12.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "BMG Rights Management to Purchase Bug Music". Billboard.com. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
- ^ Friedwald, Will (2023-09-20). "EL Recordings". queen-esther.com. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
- ^ "Queen Esther / Watch Past Performances". The Kennedy Center. Archived from the original on 2014-02-02.
- ^ Friedwald, Will (2011-12-30). "The Jazz Scene: Rolling With the Rhythms - WSJ.com". Online.wsj.com. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "THE SALON - Upcoming Events / Past Events". Thesalon.biz. Archived from the original on 2012-01-13. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Where The Flappers Are Flocking". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 2013-10-19.
- ^ "Black Opry Revue featuring Nikki Morgan and Queen Esther". woodyguthriecenter.org. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ^ "Black Opry Revue". levonhelm.com. 10 October 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ^ "Joe's Pub Unveils Artist Selections for the 2023-2024 Working Group Season". Broadwayworld.com. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
- ^ "2023 Keychange US Talent Development Program". keychangeus.com. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
- ^ "12 Artists Awarded Fellowships By The National Arts Club". hyperallergic.com. 18 January 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
- ^ "Women's Fund for Media, Music and Theater". nyc.gov. 25 November 2022. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
- ^ "RENT - Angel Tour". ibdb.com. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
- ISBN 0822386135.
- ^ PETER MARKS Published: August 27, 1998 (1998-08-27). "THEATER REVIEW; Sometimes Delightful, Never Easy: It's Fringe - New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Hadary and Bishop to Read Paper Doll at George Street, April 30-May 2". Playbill.com. 1999-04-27. Archived from the original on 2013-01-31. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ STEPHEN HOLDEN Published: August 29, 2000 (2000-08-29). "CABARET REVIEW; A Woman of Many Faces, Not to Mention Outfits and Wigs - New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ TV.com (2002-02-10). "The It Factor - Season 1, Episode 12: New York City: Episode 12". TV.com. Archived from the original on 2015-01-13. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ Collins, Glenn (2001-11-14). "Public Lives - Public Lives - It's On With the Show, for Those Who Need It". The New York Times. New York City. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Star-Studded 'Canteen' Entertains, Benefits Rescue Workers at TriBeCa Playhouse". Playbill.com. 2001-10-29. Archived from the original on 2013-01-31. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Calendar - BLAZING TONGUES: Part 1". Harlem Stage. 2011-05-10. Archived from the original on 2012-03-02. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ [1] [dead link]
- ^ "Queen Esther". Archived from the original on 2012-08-06. Retrieved 2012-07-08.
- ^ Harlem Arts Festival Published: August 20, 2012 (2012-08-20). "Harlem Arts Festival - Artists". Harlem Arts Festival. Retrieved 2023-09-12.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ NPTC Published: May 20, 2021 (2023-08-29). "Introducing the 2021 Short Play Lab Members - New Perspectives Theater Company". New Perspectives Theater Company. Retrieved 2023-09-12.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ WP Theater Published: May 29, 2023 (2023-05-29). "The Pipeline Festival 2024". The WP Theater. Retrieved 2023-09-09.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Queen Esther". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- ^ "Queen Esther | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
External links
- Official website
- Queen Esther at NPR Music
- Queen Esther at IMDb
- Queen Esther: Reclaiming Her Country (April 2023) Soul Country magazine
- When The World Is On Fire: The Black Roots of Folk Music (January 2021) Medium
- Queen Esther interview (February 2005) Ear Candy magazine