The world of music is vast and ever-changing. However, one thing remains constant: everyone loves good music. Jazz singer Dee Daniels has a long history with all kinds of good music; the singer is renowned not just in America, but globally. On Sunday, June 11, Daniels performs with the St. Louis Symphony to celebrate Ella Fitzgerald’s 100th birthday, paying homage to other great ladies of swing along the way, including Billie Holiday, Peggy Lee, and Sarah Vaughan. You’ll hear legendary classics including, “A Tisket, A Tasket,” “Fever,” “Can’t Help Lovin’ Day Man,” “Makin’ Whoopee,” “Mack the Knife” and many more.
Daniels recently sat with us and discussed the music she loves—and how music has changed her life.
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What are your inspirations, as far as music goes?
Well, I have lots of inspirations, as every artist should. Growing up in the church in Oakland, California, the great gospel musicians of the time were certainly my first inspirations. However, as I got older but before my professional career, I listened to a lot of Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, and The Rolling Stones. Certainly my mentors acted as inspirations as well.
How did you get your start in music?
I was in a rock ‘n’ roll band, and we dabbled into R & B and jazz, although at the time I didn’t know it. When our band began picking up media attention, they referred to me as a jazz singer, and I initially took it as an insult. My first mentor, Jabo Ward, told me that it was far from an insult. “Everyone can’t be a jazz singer.”
You were an art teacher before you began singing professionally. What was your “Aha!” moment?
In college, I sang with bands. I was a full-time student and a full-time performer—it’s how I paid my way through school. I never thought of it as a career, though. However, one night I attended a New Year’s Eve party where I ran into a band that I’d sung with before. We reconnected, and they asked me to join the band, to which I responded “I have a real job teaching already, I don’t need another one.” Shortly thereafter, I found myself teaching five days and performing six nights a week. Soon enough, I had to decide if I wanted to teach or be a musician, and I chose the music and never looked back.
Would you say that you have a philosophy when it comes to your music or teaching others?
Absolutely I do! I tell my students all of the time that if you cannot think “it,” then “it” cannot be done. Essentially what I’m saying here is based on the idea of mind over matter. For instance, when I first began singing I had maybe an octave and a half range, and now I have a little more four octaves under my belt. I honestly didn’t believe that I would ever have the octave that I have now, but the day I changed my thinking was the day my career began expanding. I’m ever grateful to the people who told me I could, including George Teckham and Jabo Ward. They never gave up on me, and thusly I never gave up on myself.
Catch Daniels at SLSO’s Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald & Ladies of Swing on Sunday, June 11. Tickets are $35–$68 and can be purchased online. Powell Hall is located at 718 N. Grand. For more info, go to stlsymphony.org or deedaniels.com.
