Vivian Sessoms

Vivian Sessoms is a Harlem-born vocalist whose work moves between jazz, soul, and R&B. A niece of the singer Nancy Wilson, she built her craft on the road as a backing and featured vocalist for artists including Ryuichi Sakamoto, Michael Jackson, Cher, Donna Summer, and Sean Combs. With her longtime co-producer and creative partner Chris Parks she released the album Life in 2018 on the Ropeadope label, followed by Life II, pairing socially conscious writing with jazz-inflected arrangements. Her records have drawn on New York collaborators such as saxophonist Casey Benjamin, pianist Shedrick Mitchell, and harpist Brandee Younger. She leads her own quartet at New York rooms including The Django.