Lady’s D.

Vocal, Jazz, Composer http://www.myspace.com/LadyDjazz

Lady D, with her natural talent and soulful voice, has been entertaining locally for years. During the late 90’s, she was an original member of the bay area combo still known as Simply Jazz. Manager/Bassist Spike Connor remembers:

“That was back in 1999 and even then Debra was in total command of her sensual, expressive voice. We’ve worked with a lot of singers since then but no one was ever better at fronting the band. She created a mood by going inside each song and living it on stage. A truly great performer.”

Shortly thereafter, she met legendary soul musician Lou Rawls, “the funkiest man alive,” who advised her that variety is an important part of the music business. Following his advice, Debra auditioned for the disco funk bank Super Fly and became the female lead vocalist. A bit later, Debra began to feel burnt out and decided to take some time off from the music scene.

It took one birthday party for her grandmother to bring her back in. It was there she met Alex Markels through her Grandma Helga insisting that her grandaughter sing a song.

Alex was open to letting Debra sit in but after hearing her sing he saw an opportunity and immediately asked her to sit in with his band on upcoming gigs. Later he gave her, her own night after sharing one with her now dear friend, Miss Paula Helene. Although hesitant as it had been a while since she had lst performed, Debra couldn’t help but be drawn into the laid back scene of Jazz. She always loved the music.

Singing was always Debra’s passion and you can hear and see it when she performs. She is always choosing songs that she can relate to. Alex Markels later introduced her to Jimmy Hobson, who co-owns Marin West Studios with him. Debra’s smooth vocals and emotion behind her songs won him over and he offered to produce her debut CD with Alex as Executive producer.