Lillian Boutté
LILLIAN BOUTTÉ was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the capital of Jazz music. First known as a talented gospel singer, LILLIAN's musical repertoire extends into Jazz, R & B, Swing and Blues. For the last twenty years she has toured around the world spreading her unique and feisty sound in entire Europe and on the Asian Jazz scene in Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong New Zealand and Australia.
She can be seen in Stevenson Pallifi's award winning documentary "Piano Players rarely play together" featuring Professor Longhair, Toots Washington and her friend and mentor Allen Toussaint. She can also be seen in her cameo appearance in Allen Parker's film "Angel Heart" and is featured on the soundtrack with the Blues great Brownie McGee.
Her life long friend Mr. Vernell Bagneris molded her acting skills. When he cast her in his black Vaudeville music ONE MO' TIME, where he kept her busy with the show for 4 years in New Orleans, Sweden and Brazil.
In 1986 LILLIAN returned home to be honoured by her city with the official title of 'Musical Ambassador', which had not been bestowed on a New Orleans musician since the world famous Louis Armstrong.
LILLIAN has been compared with the legendary female voices of Jazz music as Bessie Smith, Dinah Washington, Aretha Franklin and Mahalia Jackson, but still she found her very unique style which can't be compared to anybody else.
She has had the unique distinction of being one of the only performers to wear two different 'hats' at the Jazz & Heritage Festival by performing in the Jazz and the Gospel categories in the same year.
She has performed and can be heard on recordings with legendary music greats as Jay Mc Shane, Harry 'Sweets' Edison, Milt Hinton, Gus Johnson, Sammy Price, Doc Cheatham, Arnett Cobb, Al Casey, Dr. John, Benny Waters, Danny Barker, Professor Longhair, Clark Terry and with England's trumpet great Humphrey Lyttleton.
With success in 1992 she spearheaded 45 of her New Orleans music friends and brought the sounds of Cajun, Soul, R & B, Gospel, Traditional N.O. Brassband and as well the New Orleans cuisine to 22 cities in Germany under the title SPIRIT OF LOUISIANA.
In 1993 she originated the project GOSPEL UNITED in co-operation with 2 Danish organizers, where she was able to show her musical and social influences.
live Videoclip
(1,05 MB, 35sec)
This project in 1994 brought LILLIAN and her New Orleans Gospel group together with 1000 voices of students from all over Denmark - including a Live-CD and TV-coverage with great success, which went into another project in 1995 with a choir this time of 3000 voices on stage with her.
After all these years on the road- having seen and been heard in almost all countries of the whole world, her favourite part of her work is doing workshops with kids, teens and adults. A wonderful place to combine her love for the music, connecting with people of all walks of life and her social, cultural and political interest.
As an 'Ambassador' she has become the liaison between political and official dignitaries of the city of New Orleans and various festivals, institutions and just people all over the world who never stopped loving her famous hometown. What better motto for her life could she have given by her city such as:
MUSIC IS MY LIFE!!!