The ASCAP Foundation President Paul Williams said: "The
ASCAP Foundation is honored to recognize Dee Dee Bridgewater not only for her
immense talent and singular contribution to music, but for her work and
commitment to building a food-secure world for current and future
generations. She is a shining example of
how the creative community can step forward and use their talent and influence
to improve the human condition. We are delighted to present Dee Dee Bridgewater
with our ASCAP Foundation Champion Award."
The Champion Award was established by The ASCAP Foundation
to celebrate ASCAP members whose contributions extend beyond music to
significant charitable and humanitarian efforts. Previous members who have
received the award include Arlo Guthrie, Tony Bennett, Judy Collins, John
Mellencamp, Billy Joel, Richard Marx, Ne-Yo and Jason Mraz. As a Goodwill
Ambassador to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Bridgewater
is part of an appeal for international solidarity to finance global grassroots
projects in the fight against world hunger.
Dee Dee Bridgewater is currently preparing for the release
of her new album, Memphis: Yes, I'm Ready on September 15. The eagerly-anticipated project has been in
the works for several years as Bridgewater returned to her birth city to
continue the musical exploration of her roots and influences, determined to
recapture the same magic and history of the Blues, R&B and Soul classics
that she takes on as repertoire and that were originally made in/associated
with the city. The album was recorded at
Willie Mitchell's historic Royal Studios.
Known for her powerhouse vocals and masterful scat singing,
Bridgewater has led a multifaceted career spanning four decades. She earned her first professional experience
as a member of the legendary Thad Jones/Mel Louis Big Band, and throughout the
70s performed with jazz notables Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon and
Dizzy Gillespie. After a foray into the
pop world during the 1980s, she relocated to Paris and turned her attention
back to jazz. Bridgewater created her
own label, DDB Records, and subsequently produced all her critically acclaimed
CD projects — all but one have received Grammy nominations. Her successful 1997 tribute to Ella
Fitzgerald, Dear Ella, earned her two Grammys.
Over the course of her career, Bridgwater has ascended to
the upper echelon of vocalists, putting her unique spin on standards and taking
intrepid leaps of faith in re-envisioning jazz classics. The Tony and
three-time Grammy winner most recently won the Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album
for Elemora Fagan (1915-1958): To Billie With Love From Dee Dee.
Bridgewater's parallel career in musical theater won her a
Tony Award for her role as "Glinda" in The Wiz in 1975. Her other
theatrical credits include Sophisticated Ladies, Black Ballad, Carmen, Cabaret
and the Off-Broadway and West End productions of Lady Day, for which
Bridgewater received the British Laurence Olivier Nomination for Best Actress
in a Musical.
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