Stacey Kent

Raised on a diet of swing staples Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole, in the early '90s Stacey Kent graduated from New York’s Sarah Lawrence College with a degree in comparative literature, without the thought of pursuing a music career. Kent subsequently moved to England where she began singing without any formal training, later studying at jazz at London’s esteemed Guildhall School of Music and Drama. It was there Kent met her future husband and tenor saxophone player Jim Tomlinson, and before long Kent was impressing audiences with the Vile Bodies Swing Orchestra at the Ritz Hotel in London. With a growing reputation, Kent earned the role of big-band singer in Ian McKellen’s film “Richard III”, after which she signed with Candid Records in 1996.

The following year Kent issued her debut full-length “Close Your Eyes” to widespread critical acclaim. The studio album “Love Is… The Tender Trap” followed in 1999, featuring a string of well-known swing/jazz numbers and Tomlinson on saxophone and production duties. The singer’s third, “Let Yourself Go: Celebrating Fred Astaire”, was a tribute to the graceful singer/dancer and was followed by “Dreamsville” in May 2001. Showcasing the music of Richard Rodgers, Kent’s fifth studio album “In Love Again: The Music of Richard Rogers” appeared in 2002 after which she presented the album of jazz numbers “The Boy Next Door” in August 2003.

In 2006 she recorded a collaborative album with partner Jim Tomlinson entitled “The Lyric”, which earned critical acclaim featuring songs by Frank Loesser, Irving Berlin, and Richard Rodgers. The record would prove to be her last on Candid Records with Kent subsequently singing with Blue Note/EMI. The studio effort “Breakfast on the Morning Tram” in 2007 represented her new label debut, and was followed three years later by the popular French-language album “Raconte-moi…”. The jazz singer’s debut live album “Dreamer in Concert” arrived in 2011 recorded at the La Cigale theatre in Paris, followed by the full-length “The Changing Lights” in 2013.