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ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News
Divas Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves and Lizz Wright embraced an Istanbul audience Tuesday night
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Divas Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves and Lizz Wright embraced an Istanbul audience Tuesday night, not only singing jazz but also the “truth” as part of a tour dedicated to the songs of their favorite female stars.
The three singers provided an enthralling mix of blues, jazz and African music, mesmerizing the audience at the Cemil Topuzlu Open-Air Theater on Tuesday night as part of the ongoing Istanbul Jazz Festival.
The trio’s tour, called “Sing the Truth,” is centered on the themes of equality, sisterhood, and being someone strong instead of being a victim. Kidjo, Reeves and Wright came back to make the tour after their critically acclaimed 2009 tribute tour of Nina Simone.
Kidjo, a singer-songwriter originally from West Africa that now lives in France, captured the audience’s attention the most with her blend of dancing and cheerful songs.
She told the Hürriyet Daily News after the show that her long-lasting energy came from the sun. “Everybody in the band was complaining about the hot weather except me, as the source of the energy circulating in my body comes from the sun,” Kidjo said.
During the concert, Kidjo also defined herself as “colorblind” as she emphasized equality. “I cannot see your color, you are all the same to me,” said Kidjo, adding that she could not imagine a person who could pray to God but, at the same time, kill for the sake of God.
In the run-up to the new millennium, she said people kept asking whether the personality of humankind would change after 2000. But according to Kidjo, nothing has changed, as people have continued to pray to nothing else but “money.”
Reeves, who has won numerous Grammy Awards thanks in part to three-and-a-half octave range, told the Daily News that the trio decided to sing a number of songs, including prominent folk singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell’s “Both sides now,” and late jazz master Etta James’ “A lover is forever.”
Despite the exhausting performance, Reeves retained the fever and passion in her eyes after the concert and demonstrated that she was not only an international star, but a person who believed in the power of sisterhood in music thanks to her modest personality.
With her rich, rotund voice, Wright meanwhile emphasized the love of God in her songs – a manifestation of her church background.
Asked how she enjoyed singing with two other jazz divas, Wright said she was delighted to share the stage with Kidjo and Reeves because their soul came out as they sang.
(Source: www.hurriyetdailynews.com )