Jamila Ford

Majoring in music with an emphasis in vocal performance, Jamila attended the University of California Riverside graduating with her BA in 2001. Since then, Ford has performed around the world as a solo artist and as a backing vocalist, lending her talent to the projects of artists such as multi-platinum selling jazz artist Melody Gardot (Spring/Summer 2012 Canada & European Tour), Spiritualized (Coachella Festival), and Bonnie Pointer (Pointer Sisters).

 

Her new EP, The Deep End, is a collection of reinterpreted standards and an original composition. Ford’s smoky, sophisticated, and self-assured vocals breathe new life into “All Blues,” “Gentle Rain,” “Sugar,” and “Wild Is the Wind.” Her original composition, “Silencio,” is a strutting Latin-jazz tinged ode to the unspoken connection between lovers.

 

Says Jamila: "I love music and I love to sing. Music is my genuine path in life. It is the best way for me to give of myself to this world. I sacrifice for it in a way that I do for nothing else. I feel most whole and most connected when I’m on stage singing." Jamila released her debut EP, the breezy Traces of the Day in January of 2001, the funky, 70’s R&B inspired Fabulous EP in 2003 and her first full-length album, the soulful and revealing Enough, in October 2010 (nominee for Independent Music Awards best Soul/R&B album, 2010). Ford’s latest EP, The Deep End, is slated for a September 2014 release.

An active member of West Coast Songwriters (WCS), Ford was awarded “Hollywood Songwriter of the Year” for her song titled “Not Exactly Perfect.” She went on to compete at the grand finals along side the year’s other regional winners at the Freight and Salvage in Berkeley, CA. She has played LA's Room 5, Pig N Whistle, The Whisky, and Genghis Cohen to enthusiastic and supportive audiences. Her songs “Ordinary People” and “If You Ever Loved Me” have been featured on podcasts in the UK and Japan. Jamila has also been featured a artist on iheartradio.com’s New! Discover & Uncover.