"All I ever wanted to do when I grew up, was put on a fancy dress and sing jazz, smoke long cigarettes, and drink bourbon on ice. Took me a while, but I'm finally doing it - save the cigarettes and bourbon." ~Leila Naderi~
Who Is She?
Photo by Vincent Lim
After a lifetime of running from what she loved the most, award-winning artist Leila Naderi (also known as Leila Neverland) is arriving on the jazz scene with grace and fortitude. Set to tour throughout the United States and beyond, this little woman has "one of the best voices in jazz" (Artistic Director, Tyrant Studios, Vancouver, BC).
But who is she and where did she come from?
When her father fell ill with Parkinson's disease in 1996, she slowly buried her love of jazz right along with his demise. He was the one who held her hand as they walked the crowded Queen Street during the inception years of the Toronto Beach's Jazz Festival. He was the one who let her stay up late Friday nights to listen to CBC's Friday Night Jazz show. He was the one who showed her old musicals, black and white film, and the history of sound and cinema. He died when her eldest of two children was one.
Through hardship and heartbreak, she transcends the archetype of the suffering rock star to sing her favourite genre, try her hand at arranging her favourite tunes, and even offer up new compositions to the jazz catalogue for generations to come. Her favourite vocalists include everyone from Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday to Bjork and Celine Dion. She also uses inspiration from old musicals in her compositions and arrangements, and spent many years in musical theatre studying with Barbara Young, Mitch Bondy, and the Canadian Children's Opera Chorus.
She was born in Balitmore, MD to a Persian immigrant father and a second generation immigrant Lithuanian Orthodox Jewish American mother in a blizzard, Feb 1st 1985. She was raised as a snowbird between Toronto and the Florida Keys where her family owned a design firm and completed high school in Texas. She spent the last 18 years going to school and raising her children in beautiful British Columbia. She has travelled the world over and touched down in places like Spain, France, the UK, Ireland, Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, Morocco, Mexico City, and most of the Continental United States. Her performances are unforgettable, and her fullest service to the music is yet to be revealed. Want to know her other half? Check out her original jazz adjacent music at www.leilaneverland.com!