Norah Jones is a multi-GRAMMY award winner who enjoys sharing her music with people. She hosts a podcast where she sits down with guests for spontaneous musical collaborations and candid discussion.
Norah Jones used the success of her debut album, Come Away With Me, as an opportunity to experiment with different styles and rework her sound; the result being Little Broken Hearts – an atmospheric album.
She was born in New York City
Norah Jones, a jazz singer hailing from New York City and awarded with two Grammy awards – Come Away With Me (2002) and Feels Like Home (2004), quickly achieved fame following their release. Jones has since broadened her musical palette through collaborations with artists like the Foo Fighters, OutKast, Ravi Shankar (deceased), as well as various film/TV projects she hosts as a podcast show called Norah Is Playing Along (NIPAA).
She has also explored roots music through performing with various side projects. These include Little Willies – a group that specializes in covering old country hits – as well as recording one for Amazon series Man in the High Castle’s soundtrack.
Jones collaborated with producer Brian Burton (also known by his stage name Danger Mouse). Together they produced Begin Again – an emotionally raw and atmospheric record that draws upon inspiration from Dr. Seuss books.
She was raised in Grapevine, Texas
Geetali Norah Jones Shankar, daughter of Indian sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar and music producer Sue Jones, began showing an interest in music at an early age by joining her church choir; later her mother encouraged her to attend music camps and arts schools while listening to records by Etta James, Billie Holiday and Aretha Franklin from her mother’s record collection.
She rose to fame following the release of her 2002 debut album Come Away With Me, which earned five Grammy awards. Feels Like Home was another massive success story; reaching number one worldwide on charts worldwide while selling over one million copies worldwide.
Jones has collaborated with numerous artists, such as Seth MacFarlane from Family Guy on his song “Two Sleepy People”. Additionally, she was seen in 2012 movie Ted and appeared on Herbie Hancock’s album River: The Joni Letters.
She studied at the University of North Texas
Her debut album Come Away With Me caused waves in the music industry with its blend of acoustic pop and jazz influences, leading record labels to offer her opportunities to further explore her musical style. Since then, she has collaborated with artists like Foo Fighters, Ryan Adams & the Cardinals.
Jones’ music has often been compared to that of Billie Holiday and Nina Simone, whom she credits with helping to shape her desire to express herself through song. With a voice both intimate and passionate, Jones can evoke strong emotional responses in her listeners.
Norah Jones will perform at UNT’s Oaktopia music festival later this year and she participated in a Q&A session with students prior to her appearance. John Richmond, dean of UNT’s College of Music facilitated this event; during which Norah discussed her background as a musician as well as adapting to public demand for more of her sound.
She moved to New York City
Norah Jones first made her mark on music history with her debut album Come Away With Me in 2002, an atmospheric blend of jazz, pop, and country that catapulted her to international stardom and earned five Grammy awards, including Best New Artist. Since then she has continued releasing critically-acclaimed albums while collaborating with artists across genres.
Visions is a funky yet gently psychedelic garage-soul album featuring her soulful vocals over fuzzy guitars and off-kilter drums, produced by Leon Michels who is best known for working with Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys and producing their albums.
Norah Jones is known for her wide variety of solo albums as well as collaborations with musicians from different genres, such as Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and Outkast member Andre 3000 from Outkast. In 2010, she released the compilation album…Featuring Norah Jones which showcased collaborations from across genres.