Deelee Dubé Wins Sarah Vaughan Jazz Vocal Competition

By Michael Barris I Nov. 29, 2016

Deelee Dubé performs during the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition in Newark, New Jersey, on Nov. 20.
(Photo: Courtesy NJPAC/TD James Moody Fest)

Deelee Dubé’s performance during the final round of the 2016 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition in Newark, New Jersey, on Nov. 20 illustrated this truism: As a vocalist increasingly sings with integrity, the potential for her performance to touch audiences—and judges—rises exponentially.

Dubé, a house singer at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London, adeptly mined the distinctive qualities of her voice to prevail as the winner of the fifth annual competition at New Jersey Performing Arts Center, holding off a challenge from the enormously talented Sinne Eeg of Copenhagen, Denmark.

In accepting the award, Dubé expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to participate in a tradition that, for five years, has helped extend the legacy of Newark-born vocalist Sarah Vaughan.

“To be here honoring Sarah Vaughan has been not only a dream come true for me because I love Sarah Vaughan, but it is also an honor to be celebrating her voice, her music and her legacy,” said Dubé, whose deft final-round performance pointed to the power inherent in connecting with one’s own unique voice. “I feel so blessed.”

Exploring the cello tones that informed her bottom register (and were reminiscent of The Divine One herself), Dubé created an immediacy that resonated with audience members and judges. Her grand prize package consisted of a Concord Records recording contract and $5,000 cash.

Eeg, who had delighted the crowd in the first round with a superb blend of technique, self-assurance and professionalism but faltered in her final-round performance, was declared the first runner-up and took home $1,500 cash. Detroit native Lauren Scales was second runner-up, receiving $500.

Falling short of the final three were Lauren Bush, a Canadian-born London transplant whose self-released debut album received a 3.5-star rating in DownBeat’s January issue, and Los Angeles-based Teira Lockhart, a finalist in the 2013 Sarah Vaughan competition.

The event, emceed by Rhonda Hamilton—an announcer and producer with Newark jazz radio station WBGO—capped off the weeklong TD James Moody Jazz Festival, named for another Newark progeny, saxophonist James Moody.

The judges were bassist and Moody festival advisor Christian McBride, singers Dianne Reeves and Sheila Jordan, WBGO host Sheila E. Anderson and jazz journalist Mark Ruffin.

In her welcoming remarks, Hamilton told the audience that the competition’s role in boosting the careers of promising jazz singers fit with Newark’s history as a jazz hotbed. During the first half of the 20th century, the city was home to dozens of nightclubs and live theaters that featured the biggest names in jazz. Besides Vaughan and Moody, it also is the birthplace of saxophonist Wayne Shorter.

“Jazz will always be a big part of the cultural life of Newark,” Hamilton told the audience in Victoria Hall, an intimate auditorium within NJPAC. “And certainly, Sarah Vaughan’s legacy is part of the cultural fabric of our country.”

As evidence of Vaughan’s importance, Hamilton said, the U.S. Postal Service in March issued a Commemorative Forever Stamp to honor the jazz legend. Former DownBeat editor Dan Morgenstern served as a consultant for the Postal Service.

Hamilton also noted that this year’s finals had a distinctively international flavor, with singers present from the United Kingdom and Denmark.

The five finalists—survivors of three preliminary rounds and a public vote, with 7,500 votes cast at IndabaMusic.com—were originally part of a field that included entrants from 23 countries.

The 145 eligible tracks submitted to the website were assessed on the performer’s understanding of Vaughan’s work, vocal quality, musicality, technique, individuality, artistic interpretation and the ability to swing. A trio led by pianist Sergio Salvatore, with bassist Lyle Atkinson and drummer Buddy Williams, accompanied the singers.

Throughout the first round, in which each of the five performers sang two tunes each, the room seemed to belong to Eeg. On a mid-tempo take of “Comes Love,” the Danish powerhouse demonstrated an ability to phrase with complexity, showcasing smooth transitions between notes and a deep connection with the lyrics.

Her operatic scatting breaks recalled Ella Fitzgerald, and her dramatic presentation of the ballad “Don’t Be So Blue”—the title track to her Danish Music Award-winning 2010 album—left the audience gasping in admiration.

But Eeg’s decision to do a bossa version of “It Might As Well Be Spring” proved her undoing in the final round. Despite showing an ability to phrase provocatively without sacrificing feel, the somewhat laconic treatment of the song muted her strengths, leaving her vulnerable to a superior performance by another singer.

That happened when Dubé unveiled “Estate.” Having overcome the intonation issues and thinness of tone that blunted early-round performances of “Darn That Dream” and “Cherokee,” the British singer wrapped her fine, horn-like sound around the clinching number, scoring heavily with the audience and the judges when it mattered most.

“In terms of my performance, my delivery, I just gave my heart and soul and spirit, and that was it,” Dubé said. “I just let myself be, as I always do. Even when I am at Ronnie Scott’s. That’s what I do. That’s been my life.”