The one and only Molly Johnson hits North Shore via Vancouver International Jazz Festival, June 24
The Toronto-based highly decorated singer-songwriter has fans around the globe
BlueShore at CapU presents Molly Johnson in the North Shore Jazz series as part of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival on June 24 at 8 pm at SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts [*note that the venue has changed from the originally scheduled BlueShore at CapU]
TORONTO’S MOLLY JOHNSON was in grade school in the mid-1960s when she appeared in Porgy and Bess at the Royal Alexander Theatre, she and her brother having been sought out by Ed Mirvish. Decades later, she is one of Canada’s most respected jazz singer-songwriters and philanthropists, with followers around the globe. And she’s coming to the West Coast for BlueShore at Cap U’s North Shore Jazz series as part of the 2023 Vancouver International Jazz Festival.
Johnson will perform with her rock-solid quartet, which includes bassist Mike Downes, pianist Robi Botos, and drummer Davide DiRenzo.
The artist’s list of accomplishments and accolades is long.
On International Women’s’ Day this year, Johnson was awarded the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government; she is also a Governor General Performing Arts Award recipient.
Having studied at the National Ballet School, Johnson started writing her own songs in her youth, first fronting a disco band, then forming an art-rock group that became the Infidels. Jazz soon became more prominent in her world.
Her albums include her 2000 self-titled debut, which led to comparisons to Billie Holiday for her smoky vocals. Then came the 2003 jazz-pop release Another Day, which gave rise to stardom in France; and 2006’s Messin’ Around, which blended pop, jazz, and Tin Pan Alley-style lyrics. Johnson’s Lucky, from 2008, won a Juno Award for Best Vocal Jazz Album and the 2009 National Jazz Award for Best Female Vocalist. She made a tribute album to the aforementioned artist she looked up to with Because of Billie in 2014. Her 2018 release, Meaning To Tell Ya, was produced by multiple Grammy-winning producer Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell, Tracy Chapman, Madeleine Peyroux, Norah Jones). The disc deftly blends sass, funk, soul, groove, and pop. “Molly has the kind of musical gift that cannot be cultivated by musical education or assiduous practice,” Klein said in a release. “She has great natural musical instincts, and an irresistible signature to her voice. She is a rare and wonderful talent.”
A proud mother, Johnson is a member of the Order of Canada who has performed alongside the likes of Blue Rodeo, Tom Jones, and Anne Murray, among many other luminaries. She has sung for Quincy Jones, Nelson Mandela, and the late Princess Diana.
Johnson does a great deal of charitable work, including running her self-founded Kumbaya Foundation and Festival in 1992, raising awareness and funds for people living with HIV/AIDS. In 2016, Johnson launched the Kensington Market Jazz Festival, which hosts more than 400 Canadian musicians every year.
Related Articles
Inventive trio brings genre-bending sound and characteristic improvisations to the stage in copresentation with the Rickshaw Theatre
The textile and visual artist has been a driving force in the Sea to Sky arts scene for more than a decade
Internationally acclaimed visual artist says she is being pulled from an exhibition due to concerns raised about her support for Israel, but CICA gallery says there were curatorial and financial reasons
The choral conductor wraps up 38 years of leadership with wide-ranging concerts of Canadian commissions and new works for 2024-25
Vancouver Improvised Arts Society event will feature several talented musicians, including Brooklyn-based Apache experimental violinist Laura Ortman
Festivals, music, dance, poetry, and more as artists honour Asian culture with a luminous May events calendar
The award is considered one of the world’s most generous privately funded prizes for contemporary visual artists
Vancouver-raised, New York-based musician returns to the Christ Church Cathedral after a sold-out performance of Book 1 last spring
International lineup includes all-female Norwegian brass ensemble tenThing and soprano-conductor Barbara Hannigan
New York–based musicians to harmonize the sounds of Eastern and Western instruments in Vancouver debut at the Annex
Sound the Alarm: Music/Theatre hosts a birthday ode to the iconic musical theatre composer with tracks from Phantom of the Opera, Cats, and more
In Western Front and Roundhouse copresentation, José Maceda’s work blends traditional bamboo instruments and dozens of voices
Canadian singer and voice actor opens up about finding hope and inspiration in Oaxaca’s feathered creatures, ahead of her May 3 performance
With a 20-person choir and Ukrainian folk musicians, Vancouver singer-songwriter’s concert revives story of fleeing Nazi-occupied Ukraine during the Second World War
Bold staging and some standout singing please a packed house, while breathing new life into crowd favourite
Programming announcement includes Artists in Residence Sakina Abdou, Shahzad Ismaily, and DJ O Show hosting performances, artist talks, and workshops
Orchestra put pedal to the metal in innovative program of premieres and debuts featuring works by Dmitri Shostakovich, John Adams, and B.C.’s Nicholas Ryan Kelly
Selected artist will have the opportunity to hone their craft with a three-month paid musical residency in the library’s new Recording Studio
Veteran roots, blues, and slide guitarist has played everywhere from his home base in the U.K. to the Troubadour in L.A.
The 2024 fest’s closing celebration hears from Vancouver Art Gallery’s deputy director and director of curatorial programs
Choral concert featuring contemporary world music will include works by Moshe Denburg, Farshid Samandari, and Niel Golden
Monumental exhibition unites works by celebrated Canadian contemporary artists, including Jin-me Yoon, Ian Wallace, Cameron Kerr, and Stan Douglas
Presented by Caravan World Rhythms, musician teams up with flute player Debopriya Chatterjee and sarangi legend Sabir Khan
British composer and musicologist Paul Rissmann will present the work alongside contemporary composer Michael Oesterle’s Entr’actes
“How does a woman with very little means achieve freedom?” the artist asks in massive-scaled new production
Program of Schubert and Mozart masterpieces will see her join hands with her husband, pianist Alvin Chow, and reunite with an old Edmonton Youth Orchestra colleague
L.A.-based group’s sound with Afro-Mexican and Americana influences spans soul, son jarocho, roots, rock, hip-hop, and more