Ledisi
The singer is on the road for her 23-date Intimate Truth tour with Raheem DeVaughn & Leela James.
Ledisi has definitely moved past the Grammy Awards telecast controversy of Beyoncé performing “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” — the Mahalia Jackson classic that Ledisi sang in Selma.”Of course, every artist wants to be on the Grammy stage, especially after being nominated,” she says. “However, it wasn’t my time.”
But on the eve of kicking off her latest tour, the Intimate Truth, at Los Angeles’ Club Nokia on Friday night (Feb. 27), the nine-time Grammy nominee chatted with Billboard about a few more important truths.
Grammys 2015: Ledisi Responds to Beyonce Performing Her ‘Selma’ Track
Ledisi hopes the Grammy brouhaha will encourage longtime and new fans to stand solidly behind R&B. “People need to full-on support R&B artists so that more of us can be on TV and be booked for concerts,” declares the Verve singer/songwriter. “That requires not just liking us on Facebook or Instagram, but buying our music and coming to our shows. R&B still lives.”
Aiding her on the mission during the Intimate Truth tour — on which seven of the dates have already sold out — are special guests and fellow R&B soldiers Raheem DeVaughn (whose new 368 Music Group/eOne Music album Love, Sex and Passion debuts at No. 1 on the R&B chart) and Leela James. Adds Ledisi, “This tour is a win for all of us.”
The 23-date tour is named after Ledisi’s latest release, a seven-song EP featuring acoustic performances from her 2014 full-length The Truth. Among the stripped-down tracks featured on the EP is “Like This,” the second single from The Truth. The song also earned the singer her most recent Grammy nomination for best R&B performance. Rounding out the Feb. 10 deluxe version of the Intimate Truth EP are music videos, live concert footage and a bonus, behind-the-scenes video from Ledisi’s 2014 The Truth tour with the Robert Glasper Experiment.
Remaining dates on the Intimate Truth tour:
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February 28 |
Fresno, CA |
Tower |
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March 1 |
Oakland, CA |
Fox Theater |
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March 4 |
Houston, TX |
Bayou Music Center |
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March 5 |
Dallas, TX |
Majestic |
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March 6 |
Tulsa, OK |
The Brady |
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March 7 |
Memphis, TN |
Orpheum Theatre |
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March 8 |
St. Louis. MO |
The Pageant |
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March 11 |
Chicago, IL |
Portage Theatre |
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March 12 |
Cleveland, OH |
House of Blues |
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March 13 |
Detroit, MI |
Motor City Casino |
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March 14 |
Indianapolis, IN |
Murat Theatre |
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March 15 |
Baltimore, MD |
Lyric Theatre |
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March 18 |
Bethlehem, PA |
Sands Bethlehem Event Center |
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March 19 |
Boston, MA |
Wilbur Theatre |
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March 20 |
Newark, NJ |
NJPAC |
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March 21 |
Washington, DC |
DAR Constitution Hall |
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March 22 |
Richmond, VA |
Altria Theater |
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March 25 |
Charlotte, NC |
The Fillmore |
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March 26 |
Greensboro, NC |
Cone Denim Entertainment Center |
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March 27 |
Nashville, TN |
War Memorial Auditorium |
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March 28 |
North Myrtle Beach, SC |
House of Blues |
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March 29 |
Atlanta, GA |
Symphony Hall |