Who is Ledisi?

Who is Ledisi?
Ledisi grew up in a musical family; her mother sang in a Louisiana R&B band, and Ledisi first began performing at age eight with the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra. She moved to Oakland, California, where she was nominated for a Shellie award in 1990 for her performance in a production of The Wiz and performed in an extended run with the San Francisco cabaret troupe, Beach Blanket Babylon.[1] She studied opera and piano for five years at University of California Berkeley in their Young Musicians Program.
In the 1990s, she formed a group called Anibade, alongside Sundra Manning (producer, keyboards, songwriting), Cedrickke Dennis (guitar), Nelson Braxton (bass), Wayne Braxton (sax), and Tommy Bradford (drums), playing a jazz and hip-hop influenced kind of soul.[1] The group won acclaim in the Bay Area, and recorded a demo which scored airplay on local stations. Ledisi tried to get the group signed to a major label, but had no luck, and the group released its first album, Soulsinger, independently in January of 2000.[1]
Her second album, Feeling Orange but Sometimes Blue, was also released independently in 2002, and is now a collector's item. During this time she also recorded commercials for the SCI FI Channel. In 2007, she signed with Verve, and her major-label debut, Lost & Found, was released on August 28, 2007. A single from this album, "Alright", has hit #65 on the Billboard Hot R&B chart.[2]
Ledisi is known for her jazz influenced vocals. She is often compared to Ella Fitzgerald and is known for her scat style of singing.
In December 2007 she received a Grammy nomination as Best New Artist.[3] Ledisi is slated to appear in the film Leatherheads opening April 4, 2008. She appeared on Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns soundtrack.