Two-time Grammy Award-winning jazz singer, songwriter, and producer Cassandra Wilson has died at the age of 70. Her death was confirmed by her manager and the Hinds County Coroner.
Wilson died Tuesday morning at her home in Jackson, Mississippi. A statement from her manager described her passing as peaceful, "surrounded by family, close friends, and her manager."
Born and raised in Jackson, Wilson displayed an early passion for music, influenced by artists like Motown, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk. She began piano lessons at age six and played clarinet in marching bands. While attending Millsaps College and Jackson State University, she performed at coffeehouses and in cover bands. In the early 1980s, she studied with jazz musicians in New Orleans before relocating to New York City. There, she became a key vocalist in Steve Coleman's M-Base Collective.
Time magazine named Wilson "America's best singer" in 2001, recognizing her distinctive contralto voice that seamlessly blended traditional jazz with folk, pop, R&B, and country music. Her innovative approach to jazz earned her four Grammy nominations, with wins for best jazz vocal album in 1997 for "New Moon Daughter" and in 2009 for "Loverly."
In 2015, Wilson performed a special concert at the Apollo Theater celebrating the 100th birthday of blues singer Billie Holiday. That same year, she released her album "Coming Forth by Day," a tribute to Holiday. In 2022, Wilson was honored as a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master.
Musicians and public figures paid tribute to Wilson's legacy. Jon Batiste described her voice as sounding like the South and noted her impact on his own music. "Her Mississippi heritage was always present in everything no matter how expansive her artistry evolved," he wrote on Instagram. Jackson Mayor John Horhn stated that the city and the world have lost "a singular musical voice" and that Wilson "carried the sound, spirit and history of Mississippi with her wherever her music reached."