Biography
Lizz Wright merges jazz, gospel, folk, blues, and soul through the calming depth of her contralto, whether exploring romance, belief, grief, or quiet observation. Raised singing in rural Georgia churches, she participated extensively in choirs before launching her recording career as a guest vocalist on Joe Sample’s The Pecan Tree. Her polished Verve debut, Salt (2003), quickly climbed Billboard’s contemporary jazz chart, after which she completed a three-album stretch on Verve Forecast that closed with the gospel-focused Fellowship (2010), a number-two placement on the principal jazz list. Subsequent Concord releases included Freedom & Surrender (2015) and Grace (2017). Going independent the following decade, Wright launched her Blues & Greens label with Holding Space (2022), her initial live album, and followed it with Shadow (2024), among her more blues-leaning studio outings.
Born Elizabeth LaCharla Wright in Hahira, Georgia, she cultivated a love of music in childhood when her father, pianist and music director at the local church, urged her to internalize traditional hymns. Blues and jazz entered her repertoire later, and by high school she collected prizes in choral contests. At Georgia State University in Atlanta she studied voice and, in 2000, joined the quartet In the Spirit, soon celebrated locally as the city’s finest jazz vocal group—an accolade that spurred further refinement of her skills. Two years afterward she appeared as featured singer on “No One But Myself to Blame” and “Fool’s Gold” from Joe Sample’s The Pecan Tree. Signed to Verve for her own projects, she issued Salt in 2003, produced by Tommy LiPuma, Brian Blade, and Joe Cowherd; the album balanced originals such as “Salt” and “Silence” with interpretations including “Open Your Eyes, You Can Fly” and “Walk with Me, Lord,” reached number two on Billboard’s contemporary jazz chart, and was followed by her reading of the title track on Danilo Perez’s …Till Then.
For her next effort Wright transferred to the relaunched Verve Forecast imprint. Dreaming Wide Awake arrived in 2005 under Craig Street’s production with a core rhythm section of bassist David Piltch, drummer Earl Harvin, and keyboardist Glenn Patscha, plus guitarist Chris Bruce, who remained a frequent collaborator. The track “Hit the Ground” initiated her partnership with songwriter and backing vocalist Toshi Reagon, while her version of “I’m Confessin’” became one of her best-loved standards. Another Craig Street production, The Orchard, appeared in 2008; Wright and Reagon co-wrote six songs, among them “My Heart,” and the set also featured Led Zeppelin’s “Thank You” alongside Sweet Honey in the Rock’s “Hey Mann,” written by Reagon’s mother, Bernice Johnson Reagon. Additional guest appearances before the decade closed ranged from James Taylor’s “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight” on David Sanborn’s Closer to Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer’s “Come Rain or Come Shine” on Toots Thielemans’ One More for the Road, the Band’s “Whispering Pines” shared with Jakob Dylan, and Billy Taylor and Dick Dallas’ “I Wish I Knew (How It Feels to Be Free)” alongside Marcus Printup and Takana Miyamoto.
Opening the 2010s, Fellowship attained number two on Billboard’s jazz chart yet underscored Wright’s gospel foundation by drawing on material associated with Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Joan Wasser (also known as Joan as Police Woman); its lead single was “(I’ve Got to Use My) Imagination,” first recorded by Gladys Knight & the Pips. Brian Bacchus and Toshi Reagon produced, with contributions from Bernice Johnson Reagon on backing vocals, Meshell Ndegeocello on bass for two tracks and as composer of another, and Angélique Kidjo adding vocals to two songs. Wright’s Concord period began with Freedom & Surrender, produced by Larry Klein and issued in 2015 after earlier guest spots on projects by Ndegeocello and Terri Lyne Carrington; it included a duet with Gregory Porter on “Right Where You Are” and an atmospheric take on Nick Drake’s “River Man.” Grace followed in 2017, produced by Joe Henry, for whom Wright had previously covered “Stop.” The Southern-themed collection revisited Allen Toussaint’s “Southern Nights,” Rev. Thomas A. Dorsey’s “Singing in My Soul,” and Ray Charles’ “What Would I Do Without You,” closing with “All the Way Here,” co-written by Wright and Maia Sharp.
Once her tenures with Verve and Concord ended, Wright formed Blues & Greens Records. A 2018 performance at Berlin’s Columbia Theatre, supported by guitarist Chris Bruce, drummer Ivan Edwards, keyboardist Bobby Ray Sparks II, and bassist Ben Zwerin, was documented on Holding Space and released in 2022. Marking her twenty-fifth year as a professional vocalist, she returned in 2024 with Shadow. Co-produced by Wright and Bruce, the album features several co-written pieces, among them “Your Love,” which showcases Meshell Ndegeocello on bass and Brandee Younger on harp, and “Root of Mercy,” composed as a tribute to Wright’s grandmother.
Born Elizabeth LaCharla Wright in Hahira, Georgia, she cultivated a love of music in childhood when her father, pianist and music director at the local church, urged her to internalize traditional hymns. Blues and jazz entered her repertoire later, and by high school she collected prizes in choral contests. At Georgia State University in Atlanta she studied voice and, in 2000, joined the quartet In the Spirit, soon celebrated locally as the city’s finest jazz vocal group—an accolade that spurred further refinement of her skills. Two years afterward she appeared as featured singer on “No One But Myself to Blame” and “Fool’s Gold” from Joe Sample’s The Pecan Tree. Signed to Verve for her own projects, she issued Salt in 2003, produced by Tommy LiPuma, Brian Blade, and Joe Cowherd; the album balanced originals such as “Salt” and “Silence” with interpretations including “Open Your Eyes, You Can Fly” and “Walk with Me, Lord,” reached number two on Billboard’s contemporary jazz chart, and was followed by her reading of the title track on Danilo Perez’s …Till Then.
For her next effort Wright transferred to the relaunched Verve Forecast imprint. Dreaming Wide Awake arrived in 2005 under Craig Street’s production with a core rhythm section of bassist David Piltch, drummer Earl Harvin, and keyboardist Glenn Patscha, plus guitarist Chris Bruce, who remained a frequent collaborator. The track “Hit the Ground” initiated her partnership with songwriter and backing vocalist Toshi Reagon, while her version of “I’m Confessin’” became one of her best-loved standards. Another Craig Street production, The Orchard, appeared in 2008; Wright and Reagon co-wrote six songs, among them “My Heart,” and the set also featured Led Zeppelin’s “Thank You” alongside Sweet Honey in the Rock’s “Hey Mann,” written by Reagon’s mother, Bernice Johnson Reagon. Additional guest appearances before the decade closed ranged from James Taylor’s “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight” on David Sanborn’s Closer to Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer’s “Come Rain or Come Shine” on Toots Thielemans’ One More for the Road, the Band’s “Whispering Pines” shared with Jakob Dylan, and Billy Taylor and Dick Dallas’ “I Wish I Knew (How It Feels to Be Free)” alongside Marcus Printup and Takana Miyamoto.
Opening the 2010s, Fellowship attained number two on Billboard’s jazz chart yet underscored Wright’s gospel foundation by drawing on material associated with Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Joan Wasser (also known as Joan as Police Woman); its lead single was “(I’ve Got to Use My) Imagination,” first recorded by Gladys Knight & the Pips. Brian Bacchus and Toshi Reagon produced, with contributions from Bernice Johnson Reagon on backing vocals, Meshell Ndegeocello on bass for two tracks and as composer of another, and Angélique Kidjo adding vocals to two songs. Wright’s Concord period began with Freedom & Surrender, produced by Larry Klein and issued in 2015 after earlier guest spots on projects by Ndegeocello and Terri Lyne Carrington; it included a duet with Gregory Porter on “Right Where You Are” and an atmospheric take on Nick Drake’s “River Man.” Grace followed in 2017, produced by Joe Henry, for whom Wright had previously covered “Stop.” The Southern-themed collection revisited Allen Toussaint’s “Southern Nights,” Rev. Thomas A. Dorsey’s “Singing in My Soul,” and Ray Charles’ “What Would I Do Without You,” closing with “All the Way Here,” co-written by Wright and Maia Sharp.
Once her tenures with Verve and Concord ended, Wright formed Blues & Greens Records. A 2018 performance at Berlin’s Columbia Theatre, supported by guitarist Chris Bruce, drummer Ivan Edwards, keyboardist Bobby Ray Sparks II, and bassist Ben Zwerin, was documented on Holding Space and released in 2022. Marking her twenty-fifth year as a professional vocalist, she returned in 2024 with Shadow. Co-produced by Wright and Bruce, the album features several co-written pieces, among them “Your Love,” which showcases Meshell Ndegeocello on bass and Brandee Younger on harp, and “Root of Mercy,” composed as a tribute to Wright’s grandmother.
Albums
Shadow
2024
Grace
2017
Freedom & Surrender
2015
Fellowship
2010
The Orchard
2008
Dreaming Wide Awake
2005
Salt
2003
Singles
