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SASSY Award finalist Allan Harris on his evolution as a jazz vocalist

Allan Harris
c/o the artist
Allan Harris

The Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, presented by NJPAC in Newark, recently announced the five finalists for the competition on November 20. Allan Harris, Kristin Lash, Ekep Nkwelle, Lucía Gutiérrez Rebolloso and Lucy Yeghiazaryan will compete before a panel of judges, including Regina Carter, Christian McBride, T.S. Monk, Maria Schneider, and WBGO’s own Pat Prescott. Held as the culminating event of the TD James Moody Jazz Festival, The SASSY Awards, as they’re informally known, will be hosted by WBGO’s Gary Walker and the event will feature performances by the 2021 co-winners: Tawanda Suessbrich-Joaquim and Gabrielle Cavassa.

Gary Walker is interviewing each of the finalists in the weeks leading up to the competition. This week he spoke with his friend Allan Harris about growing up in Brooklyn and taking the D Train to Harlem to eat and take in the atmosphere at his aunt Kate’s Home Cooking soul food restaurant, located right behind the legendary Apollo Theatre. There Harris saw and, in some cases, met Ellington, Sarah, Count Basie, Ella and legions of other top jazz and R&B stars, influencing his own musical life to this day. Harris also talked with Walker about his development and evolution as a jazz singer, as well as about his “Black Cowboy” project.

Watch their conversation here:

Allan Harris interview by Gary Walker

For over 27 years, Lee Mergner served as an editor and publisher of JazzTimes until his resignation in January 2018. Thereafter, Mergner continued to regularly contribute features, profiles and interviews to the publication as a contributing editor for the next 4+ years. JazzTimes, which has won numerous ASCAP-Deems Taylor awards for music journalism, was founded in 1970 and was described by the All Music Guide, as “arguably the finest jazz magazine in the world.”