[Cover photo credit to Ron T Young]
Grammy-winning vocalist Ledisi has announced For Dinah, a personal tribute album to her lifelong hero, the Jazz and Blues singer Dinah Washington, to be released on October 3, 2025, via Candid Records.
Produced by Christian McBride and Ledisi’s longtime producer Rex Rideout, the album blends Ledisi’s Soul sound with Washington’s bold pioneer spirit. The album features collaborations, including a duet with Grammy-winning vocalist Gregory Porter, and appearances by musicians like Paul Jackson Jr. and Michael King.
Along with the announcement, Ledisi has shared lead single “This Bitter Earth,” an interpretation of the ballad made famous by Dinah Washington and written by Clyde Otis. With a contemporary arrangement by Ledisi and producer Christian McBride, the track “captures the ache of loneliness and the fleeting nature of time, yet holds space for hope that life’s pain may still give way to grace.”
Ledisi comments on “This Bitter Earth”:
This song is so reflective of any era. Especially in such a chaotic time as this. People need music right now and this song is a beautiful sentiment depicting a longing for life being filled with love. When I hear Dinah I hear that longing. It’s a perfect way to announce my tribute to The Queen of The Blues. Dinah, and Aretha, inspired me to want to sing this song. My version, arranged by the great Christian McBride, blends that longing, soulfulness of soul, jazz and blues together smoothly with a contemporary/classic sound. I’m grateful to create art that displays my love for being a hybrid of music.
Born in Alabama and raised in Chicago, Dinah Washington (1924-1963) was known as both “Queen of the Blues” and “Queen of the Jukeboxes.” She prided herself on being able to sing anything and was a brilliant interpreter of Jazz and the Blues, as well as an R&B and Pop singer. Among her most devoted disciples was Aretha Franklin. But where Franklin is a household name and cultural icon, Washington, despite being wildly popular in her heyday, is tragically overlooked by the general public. It’s a problem that Ledisi hopes to correct with For Dinah.
Ledisi explains:
Before there was Aretha, there was Dinah. She deserves to be recognized in today’s music as well. So instead of asking me ‘Why Dinah?,’ you should be asking ‘Why not Dinah?’
North America Tour Dates:
September 19 – Paradise Island, Bahamas – Bahama Breeze Music Festival
September 27 – Monterey Park, CA – Monterey Jazz Festival 2025
October 2 – Chandler, AZ – Chandler Center For The Arts
October 3 – Los Angeles, CA – Walt Disney Concert Hall [Album Release Show]
October 5 – Davis, CA – Mondavi Center
October 6 – San Francisco, CA – Davies Symphony Hall
January 20–27 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – Christian McBride’s World At Sea 2026
Europe Tour Dates:
July 18 – Warsaw, Poland – Łazienki Park
July 19 – Kraków, Poland – Botanical Garden Of The Jagiellonian University
October 9 – London, UK – O2 Shepherds Bush Empire
October 10 – Aulnay-sous-Bois, France – Le Nouveau Cap
October 13 – Madrid, Spain – Sala Villanos
October 14 – Barcelona, Spain – Sala Apolo
October 15 – Utrecht, Netherlands – TivoliVredenburg
October 16 – Den Haag, Netherlands – PAARD
October 17 – Duivendrecht, Netherlands – Poppodium Q-Factory
October 18 – Hautmont, France – Centre Culturel Maurice Schumann
October 21 – Skellefteå, Sweden – Sara Kulturhus
October 23 – Oslo, Norway – Cosmopolite Scene
October 24 – Malmö, Sweden – Victoriateatern Malmö
October 25 – Zagreb, Croatia – Kino SC
January 17 – Lugano, Switzerland – LAC Lugano Arte E Cultura
