Kim Richardson

Kim Richardson
Kim Richardson, March 2012
Kim Richardson, March 2012
Background information
Born (1965-12-22) December 22, 1965 (age 58)[citation needed]
OriginRichmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
GenresR&B, soul, jazz, gospel, blues, dance-pop, musical theatre
OccupationsSinger
Years active1980s–present
Websitewww.kimrichardson.com Edit this at Wikidata

Kim Richardson (born December 22, 1965) is a Canadian singer and actress,[1] who won two Juno Awards as a solo recording artist in the 1980s.

She is still very active today, being part of over 150 shows, mostly in province of Quebec, in 2017.

Early life and education

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Richardson was born in Richmond Hill, Ontario,[2] the daughter of singer and actress Jackie Richardson,[1] the niece of blues and jazz singer Betty Richardson and the cousin of Polka Dot Door host Gairey Richardson.[2]

Career

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Richardson began performing professionally in the early 1980s, both as a solo blues, jazz and R&B vocalist and with the family musical group The Richardsons.[3]

Her first recording, the dance-pop single "He's My Lover", was released in 1985, and she won the award for Most Promising Female Vocalist at the Juno Awards of 1986.[4] Her second single, "Peek-a-Boo" was released the following year and won the award for Best R&B/Soul Recording at the Juno Awards of 1987.[5] The song was also named best single, and Richardson best female artist, at the 1987 Black Music Awards of Canada.[6]

Her third single, "I Want It", followed in 1987.[7] In the same year she participated in the recording of a Christmas charity single, "A Christmas Wish", with a lineup of Toronto-area performers that also included Billy Newton-Davis, Erroll Starr, Frozen Ghost, Prairie Oyster, Messenjah, The Pursuit of Happiness, Salome Bey, Zappacosta, Arlene Duncan and Lorraine Scott.[8]

She subsequently moved to Montreal, Quebec,[9] performing with the Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir[10] and Jim Hillman and the Merlin Factor.[11][12] The latter band won a Juno Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album at the Juno Awards of 1995.[13]

She continued to perform in Montreal as a jazz singer, as a performer in musical theatre productions, in continued collaborations with her mother and as a backing vocalist for other musicians. Her first full-length album, Kaleidoscope, was released in 2006,[9] and her second, Mes amours, followed in 2011.[14] She also participated in the recording of the soundtrack to the 2011 film Funkytown.[15]

In recent years, she has also been a frequent collaborator with singer-songwriter Jonathan Roy.[16]

References

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  1. ^ a b "My Montreal: Soul Singer Kim Richardson". Montreal Gazette. 26 February 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Singer looks to bright career". Toronto Star. 2 June 1987.
  3. ^ "Glad tidings of great jazz in New Year". Toronto Star. 18 December 1986.
  4. ^ "Glass Tiger, David Foster snare Juno honors". Windsor Star. 11 November 1986.
  5. ^ "K.D. Lang dethrones Anne Murray in Junos; Adams collects 2 top awards". Ottawa Citizen. 3 November 1987.
  6. ^ "Black singers win awards". Vancouver Sun. 16 May 1987.
  7. ^ "Budding rock star doesn't see stretch-limos on her horizon". Toronto Star. 6 June 1987.
  8. ^ "Musicians rally to record Christmas song". Toronto Star. 10 November 1987.
  9. ^ a b "Mother and daughter blues reunion". Toronto Star. 25 November 2006.
  10. ^ "Local stars come out for dynamite benefit". Montreal Gazette. 7 December 1991.
  11. ^ "Lots of Canadian musicians to spread Christmas cheer". Toronto Star. 11 December 1993.
  12. ^ Berry, David; Tucker, Rebecca (14 March 2015). "You oughta Juno: What happened to those artists voted most likely to succeed? Part 2 — 1986 – 1999". National Post.
  13. ^ "He has drum, and will travel ; Jim Hillman has landed in T.O. with his unique sextet". Toronto Star. 8 April 1999.
  14. ^ "Kim Richardson: soliste et choriste, même combat". Le Soleil (in French). 12 August 2011.
  15. ^ "Deux ans de négociations". canoe.ca. 17 January 2011. Archived from the original on 20 December 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  16. ^ Nolin, Stéphanie (13 April 2023), "Tournage idyllique pour Jonathan Roy et Kim Richardson", Showbizz (in French)
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