Patti Austin Supports the All Star Jazz Benefit For Cheryl Bentyne and City of Hope May 14th, 2012
Cheryl Bentyne, a singer and member of the Manhattan Tansfer, is a strong woman, having been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma and with Chemotherapy treatments, is declared Cancer Free!
On June 17th, the All Star Jazz Benefit will help Cheryl have the support she needs to live after the fight of cancer. Her struggles of not working and fighting cancer have been tough and this concert can help her see the support she has and hear wonderful music. This event will not only help her financially, but will continue to show all the support she has in her life.
Patti is showing her support for Cheryl and so can you!
For more information on the event, click here.
Ticket information: http://fla.vor.us/allstarjazzbenefit
Patti Austin Sings Tenderly for Starz Series “Magic City” April 19th, 2012
Patti Austin sings the song "Tenderly" for Starz Network newest series "Magic City." In this promo, she discusses how "cinematic" the music is during the 1950s, in which the series is set in. "You're hearing an entire film," is just one way Patti describes the music era, which helps us envision the time. The soundtrack includes other classics and is now available on iTunes.
Watch it all here on the new promo for the show, "Magic City," or check it out on the Starz Network. Be excited, Patti Austin is showing up on TV!
Patti Dedicates “Lean on Me” Video to Soldiers Returning From Iraq February 14th, 2012
As US troops return home from Iraq, Patti Austin has dedicated this “Lean on Me” video to all of the men and women that have served our country. “I want them to return to a standing ovation, a job to support their faithful families, or training to adapt their skills to play a meaningful role in our country’s future,” she says in the beginning of the video. After all of these men and women have risked their lives for all of us, it’s time to give them a helping hand and give them somebody to lean on. “In these times we all need help of one kind or another. We all need somebody to lean on,” Austin says.
Take a few minutes to watch this touching video, and give thanks to all of the amazing men and women that serve our country.
Patti Remembers Whitney Houston February 14th, 2012
In the days following the devastating loss of Whitney Houston, Patti Austin opened up about the moment she first heard Whitney sing. Patti, a longtime family friend, was there when Whitney performed for producer Clive Davis for the very first time. In the article entitiled “Whitney Houston’s life a saga of highs, lows” by George Pennacchio Patti remembers the magical moment when she heard Whitney sing.
“We knew from the first note that came out of her mouth,” Austin said. “Not only the sound, the timber of her voice and her maturity when she sang, but she had a great presence on stage.”
May the music, talent and beauty of Whitney Houston forever live on.
Nothing to be ashamed of! January 3rd, 2012
Going from 300 to 180 lbs is no easy work out. Within the first year of having her gastric bypass surgery, Patti Austin dropped 120 lbs! Before her surgery she was suffering from type 2 diabetes, asthma, and at risk for stroke. As soon as she felt she had accomplished what she wanted, she was happy to discuss the surgery that helped her control her health! Listen to what Patti had to say in an interview with EURweb!
A star is reborn: World wide performance December 27th, 2011
Patti Austin is that rare vocalist who transcends styles and eras with a big voice and personality to match. Whether singing the R&B numbers that marked her early successes, chart-topping pop love songs like “Baby, Come to Me” or exhibiting her jazz chops that took home a Grammy Award in 2008 for Best Jazz Album, “Avant Gershwin,” she remains at the top of her game after more than a half century.
She celebrates the departure of 2011 by dedicating her hit song, “Soldier Boy,” to the troops returning home from Iraq, and welcomes 2012 with a New Year’s Eve concert at the Kennedy Center devoted to Duke Ellington’s music, a prelude to her upcoming album.
“Duke was a giant,” she said. “The music he and Gershwin wrote is just as fresh today as when it was composed. I’m thrilled to perform at the Kennedy Center with a six-piece band and the material we recorded with the same producer of our Gershwin album, Michael Abene.”
Onstage
Patti Austin
» Where: Kennedy Center Terrace Theater
» When: 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday
» Info: $75; 202-467-4600; kennedy-center.org
Following the show, guests are invited to the Grand Foyer Party featuring waltzing and swing dancing from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. and a big balloon count-down at midnight.
Austin’s distinctive timbre caresses the ear no matter that she is performing as a soloist or singing duets with such top stars as Johnny Mathis, George Benson and James Ingram. Her long relationship with Michael Jackson began with “The Wiz” when she was contracted to book 345 singers and handle all the paper work involved.
“That was before the PC,” she said, laughing. “Michael had very little to say. He just walked around with a paper and pen writing down anything that sounded remotely intelligent. The next time we met was for a project with Quincy Jones. The three of us were sitting in Quincy’s den when the phone rang and Quincy left the room. I’m not one to start conversations, so we both sat quietly. Then all of a sudden Michael began to talk and didn’t stop. We worked together quite a bit after that in the studio and live. His energy was over the moon. This was his renaissance period when he was like a fireball, almost nuclear.”
Austin credits Quincy Jones with stoking her career. Her epiphany came when she and her musician father attended the Newport Jazz Festival as a guest of Jones.
“I was just 13 and not a fan of Judy Garland,” she said. “I admired Ella, Dinah Washington and female black singers who simply walked on stage and sang beyond compare, so when Quincy told me I had to go out front to watch her, I wasn’t happy. At that time in her life, she was a sorry mess and didn’t have a lot of her voice left.
“But what I saw was amazing, one of the top three shows I’ve ever seen. Even without her voice, Judy was still a great actress. There was a screen on stage that she’d go behind to change her outfit and talk about the song she had just sung or the next one. In short, it was all about entertaining the audience. Afterwards, I went backstage with my father just as she was passing. She stopped, looked at me, took my face in her hands and kissed me.”
Austin has never stopped entertaining in her own inimitable style. Directly ahead in 2012 are concerts in Europe, South Africa, Australia and with the Boston Pops along the way. To facilitate her schedule and avoid traveling with an entourage, she has bands in Europe, Asia and on both U.S. coasts. Her upcoming Carnegie Hall concert honoring Ella’s Gershwin Songbook with Nelson Riddle arrangements is an event not to miss.
“Gershwin and Ellington composed music of their time that has endured and is relevant today,” she said. “Ellington left an incredibly intelligent body of work that is still rich at a time when music has been downsized. It’s an honor to be able to sing for another generation his powerful and timeless music that has never lost its gleam or glitter.”
@Paula,patteam
Ring in New Beginnings with a legendary artist! December 27th, 2011
Onstage
Patti Austin
» Where: Kennedy Center Terrace Theater
» When: 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday
» Info: $75; 202-467-4600; kennedy-center.org
Following the show, guests are invited to the Grand Foyer Party featuring waltzing and swing dancing from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. and a big balloon count-down at midnight.
A great way to ring in the New Year! Spend the night swinging the past away and waltzing to new beginnings!
@Paula, patteam
Patti Austin to Appear on PROFILES November 17th, 2011
PROFILES host Mickey Burns interviews Grammy Award-winning singer Patti Austin. The episode featuring Patti Austin on PROFILES was taped at the Hotel Wales on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and will air on NYC life, channel 25 on Friday November 18th, at 10:30 PM.
The episode will also be available after its broadcast on the NYC Media – Video On Demand Player. For more information, visit www.profilestvshow.net.
Update: Watch the video right on this page.
Patti Austin Talks About 30 Years of Friendship with Michael Jackson October 26th, 2011
Patti Austin talks about 30 years of friendship with the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, on The Joy Behar show. Video below.
Patti Austin Named As The New Spokesperson for Foundation for Social Change September 30th, 2011
Patti Austin was recently named the new Spokesperson for Foundation for Social Change, an organization whose mission is to promote the act of “doing well by doing good”, providing programs and education to businesses and organizations that help promote the efforts of social change and innovation on a global scale.
As part of Patti’s new role, she will be involved in the 2011 Global Conference for Social Change and Women & Girls Education Summit to be held October 5-6 in New York City.
About the Foundation for Social Change
The Foundation works with corporations and NGOs around the world to create programs that define how doing good is good for business. It is not charity. It is not philanthropy. It is not impact investing. It is just doing the right thing. The organization proves that there is a bottom-line financial impact to solving problems. One example of this is through “eLife” – Economic Opportunity for Women & Girls education program teaching life and business skills.
