11/20/2025
Cool. Sophisticated. Unapologetically smooth.
She was Nancy Wilson — the voice that could make jazz sigh, pop shimmer, and soul feel like silk.
Born in Chillicothe, Ohio, Nancy’s rise was as graceful as her tone. By her early twenties, she was performing with Cannonball Adderley, and their 1961 collaboration Nancy Wilson/Cannonball Adderley became a landmark in vocal jazz — the record that defined her blend of storytelling and swing.
Over her six-decade career, she recorded more than 70 albums, crossing seamlessly between jazz, pop, R&B, and soul — refusing to be boxed into one sound. In 1964, her single “(You Don’t Know) How Glad I Am” won a Grammy Award, beating out The Beatles — a rare feat for a Black female jazz artist at the time.
Nancy was also one of the first Black women to host her own national television show, The Nancy Wilson Show, which aired from 1967–1968 and earned her an Emmy Award. Her poise, elegance, and wit opened doors for future Black female hosts and performers who carried themselves with the same effortless authority.
Across her life, she won three Grammy Awards, was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame, and in 2005 received the NAACP Lifetime Achievement Award. But beyond the accolades, Nancy Wilson’s true genius was her control — the way she could make a lyric feel like a conversation.
She once said: “I don’t sing jazz. I sing songs.”
And in doing so, she redefined what it meant to be a jazz singer.
🎙️ Nancy Wilson (1937–2018)
