Grammy Award-winning American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer Cassandra Wilson has died at the age of 70.
Wilson died on Wednesday at her home in Jackson, Mississippi, according to her manager, Robert Torre.
“Cassandra Wilson transitioned peacefully at home, surrounded by family, close friends, and her manager,” Robert Torre wrote in a statement, hailing her as a “legendary jazz artist.”
The statement did not reveal a cause of death. Torre said Wilson’s family and close friends have asked for privacy.
A Celebrated Jazz Career
Known for her rich and expressive contralto voice, Wilson built an acclaimed career that spanned more than three decades. Her distinctive style and ability to blend jazz with elements of blues, R&B, folk, and other musical traditions earned her a devoted following around the world.
Wilson won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance in 1997 for her album “New Moon Daughter.” More than a decade later, “Lovely” earned her another Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2009.
She also took on a leading role in “Blood on the Fields,” a 1997 oratorio by Wynton Marsalis. The work made history as the first jazz composition to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
Throughout her career, Wilson collaborated with a wide range of acclaimed musicians, including saxophonists Steve Coleman and Greg Osby, as well as hip-hop group The Roots.
Musicians Pay Tribute to Cassandra Wilson
Following news of her death, musicians and fellow artists paid tribute to Wilson and the influence she had on generations of performers.
“I learned so much from her, and I am so sad she has passed away,” musician Jon Batiste wrote in a tribute on social media.
“She had an unmistakable vocal tone, phrasing, and her approach of weaving folkloric, R&B, and diaspora music together with experimental and popular genres had a major impact on me.
“She sounded like the South.”
Wilson’s remarkable voice, musical versatility, and lasting contribution to jazz have cemented her place among the genre’s most influential artists. Her recordings and collaborations continue to serve as a lasting part of her musical legacy.
