Singer Kelle Jolly, left, and saxophonist Will Boyd will offer a tribute to Billie Holiday and Lester Young in a Legends of Jazz concert tonight, Nov. 3, at Barking Legs Theater.If you go
› What: Legends of Jazz: Tribute to Billie Holiday & Lester Young with Kelle Jolly & Will Boyd.› When: 7:30 p.m. today, Nov. 3.› Where: Barking Legs Theater, 1307 Dodds Ave.› Admission: $15.› Phone: 423-624-5347.› Website: www.barkinglegs.org.
Almost from the time she could sing, Kelle Jolly has been compared to Billie Holiday. She was OK with the vocal comparisons, but she was bothered by Holiday’s troubled lifestyle.
“Growing up, I was always compared to Billie, and I didn’t like it because her story is so tragic,” she says. “Jail, drugs and bad relationships.”
That all began to change for Jolly in high school when her music teacher created the Billie Holiday Award for her as a graduating senior.
“They didn’t have a jazz vocalist in the music department before me,” she says.