Thana Alexa is a young star in the New York jazz circuit with new ideas about the musical form.
The daughter of Croatian immigrants, Ms. Alexa offers a style of jazz rooted in pop, world music, soul and even electronica. Her efforts have won her the Rising Female Vocalist title in Downbeat magazine's critics' poll for three years in a row (2016, 2017 and 2018) and produced seven critically acclaimed albums - both solo and in partnership with others.
Her first album, 2014's Ode To Heroes, relied on a large ensemble of backing musicians but it was widely regarded as Ms. Alexa's record - her own voice and her own vision. She has subsequently worked with jazz guitarist Gene Ess and jazz drummer Antonio Sanchez albums on other records.Her collaborations with Ess have included the albums Eternal Monolith (2015) and Absurdist Theatre (2016), along with Lines in the Sand, a 2018.collaboration with Sanchez. ONA, from 2019, is her most recent effort on disc.
The biography page on her Web site explains her music this way: "Thana takes a microscopic look at the lives of women and integrates elements of jazz with soul, electronica, pop and world music to convey a message of strength, female empowerment, and the need to be the change we want to see in the world."
Thana Alexa turns 33 this month (March 2020), and you can bet she has more to contribute to jazz going forward.
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