Heather Headley
 

Heather Headley (born October 5, 1974) is a Trinidadian R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producers, and actress. She has won one Tony Award and received two Grammy Award nominations.

Biography

At age four, Headley began playing the music of her native Trinidad, including calypso, reggae, and soca. In 1989 she moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana in the United States at the age of fifteen with her mom Hannah and brother Junior, when her father was offered a job as pastor of McKee Street Church of God (Anderson).

After graduating from Northrop High School, Headley attended Northwestern University to study communications and musical theatre until the last day of her junior year, when she made the difficult decision to become a part of the musical Ragtime and drop out of school.

On 6 September 2003, Headley married Brian Musso, formerly of the New York Jets.

Career

In 1997, she played Nala in The Lion King, the Broadway musical. Headley's performance was well-received and she then originated the title role in the Broadway adaptation of Aida, earning the Tony Award for Best Actress in 2000. She also starred in a concert version of the musical Dreamgirls alongside Audra McDonald.

In the autumn of 2006, Heather sang a rendition of "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", from the musical Promises, Promises. The song was written by Hal David & Burt Bacharach for the play by Neil Simon (1968). The occasion for her performance was "The Kennedy Center Presents: The 2006 Mark Twain Prize", honoring playwright Neil Simon, and was televised on PBS.

Musical

Headley released her debut album, This Is Who I Am, in October 2002 on RCA Records. Although its first single, "He Is", was not very successful, the second single, "I Wish I Wasn't", achieved moderate success. Headley earned her a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and for Best New Artist.

Her second album, In My Mind, was delayed due to the various executive shake-ups associated with RCA parent BMG's merger with Sony. Headley joked that it should have been called Caught Up instead.

Under BMG North America chairman/CEO Clive Davis for the first time, Headley released her second album In My Mind in January 2006. The title track "In My Mind" ( produced by India.Arie collaborator Shannon Sanders ) was released as the first single; and its music video was directed by Diane Martel. The song reached number-one on the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. The second single "Me Time" was released to Urban AC outlets only. An album track, "Am I Worth It", served to promote Headley's New March of Dimes Educational Campaign "I Want My 9 Months".


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Heather Headley Tony Awards, New York City, June 12 2016 (x12)