About Me
On August 28th 2005 like so many other native New
Orleanians, Rahsaana Ison had to flee her paradise, before
the water and wind from Hurricane Katrina could inundate the
city. It is those same troubled waters that she absconded
from- which left New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in ruins,
has served as a vehicle to resurrect her career as a jazz
vocalist put on pause nearly eight years ago, after the
birth of her first child.
I never stop singing I just changed venues it is the
rebirth of jazz. Being that I like to give 100 percent in
whatever I do, I felt that rearing a child was important and
deserved my undivided attention.The hamlet of Oxford was her new venue and has served as the
performance stage, for her return to jazz.The issue of New Orleans, the birth place of jazz, returning
to her pre-Katrina state of normalcy will be contended
for years to come. Nonetheless, it is a fact that each state
providing refuge and a new life to the displace residence of
the tattered city will have a touch of jazz, from their
newly found locals.
Ison would not say it is odd to revive her jazz career in a
city well known for writers, much less music, especially
jazz. I would say that it is a piece to the puzzle due to
Hurricane Katrina many people were dispersed and they went
to many different places to spread our culture and I think
Im here to share our music culture with Oxford.Ison could never foresee the day when she would leave her
beloved city. However, Rahsaana is a name that predicted her
destiny. Given the name by her father, Richwell Ison, a Jazz
trumpeter and flutist, who expected a son to continue the
musically legacy of the Ison family. A confident Ison chose
the name Rahsaan, a tribute to one of his musical idols,
Rahsaan Roland Kirk. And on August 4th when her mother,
Eartha, gave birth to a baby girl, the proud father was
surprised but not shaken. And then any as good jazz musician
would, he improvised. He took the root cord and added a
little feminine harmony on the top by adding an a,
achieving the beautiful sound of Rahsaana!Although the elder Ison did not produce a third generation
trumpeter, the family quickly recognized that future
melodies would not be blown from a brass instrument, but
from the vocally gifted lungs of this young female child.At an early age, Rahsaana began to listen to Jazz and
imitate the sounds and rhythms that pulsated thru the
speakers of her stereo.The old albums seemed to call my name, she said.
While most children were playing outside, I was intrigued
by the albums. Rahsaana first performances were in the
church, as a 5 year-old, she began to sing in the Tulane
Memorial Baptist Church Choir.And with the Birthplace of Jazz, as her hometown, she
immersed herself into the welcoming community of these world
renowned musicians. As a teenager she was ferried by her
mother/manger to a plethora music venues ranging from
sophisticated to a hole in the wall- where the sweet
sound of her voice could cut through the smoke and soothed
even the most belligerent patrons.Days after she graduated from high school, Ison toured
Europe with the Extraordinary Students of America
performing Americas 200 years of song and dance. Her
musical education continued both on stage and in the
classroom. Ison began to garner exposure to audiences
outside of jazz circles. She began to star in several New
Orleans Recreation Department plays directed by Ty Tracy.
She is a graduate of the University of New Orleans and
studied under Leah Chase Kamata, Harold Batiste, and Ellis
Marsalis, in addition, to performing locally and abroad. She
has shared the stage, or opened for:
Hugh Masekela, Donald Harrison, Richwell Ison, Thaddeus
Ford, Isley Brothers, Jonathan Butler, Raymond Myles and the
Rams, Adonis Rose, Rochelle Farell, Soul Rebels. Rahsaana
has performed at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival,
Mayors Mardi Gras Ball, Divas in Jazz, and the Essence
Music festival.Rahsaana now looks toward the future. Her personal quest to
make lemonade from the sour lemons provided courtesy of
Katrina by gracing Oxford with her melodious voice is
underway. And she hopes to have Oxford recognized for more
than a great university, the Grove, food and Faulkner. She
wants people to think jazz when they think of Oxford,
chiefly, Rahsaana, the name that predicted her musical
journey.By: L. Kasimu Harris
http://www.myspace.com/thekasimu
