By Karu F. Daniels, AOL Black Voices



Ledisi is basking in the glow of Grammy nomination glory with her two recent nods in the categories of Best New Artist and Best R&B Album.

And she couldn't be more ecstatic about it.

"Getting [these] nominations on my first major label release makes every struggle worth it," she told The BV Newswire today. "All I had to do was move out of my own way and let God take over."

Who's Ledisi, you ask?

In my humble opinion, she's the fiercest female vocalist to grace the R&B scene in recent years. Though the New Orleans-born, Oakland-bred songstress released her first major label opus, 'Lost & Found,' late last summer, Ledisi been swooning and crooning for years -- and building an increasingly steady fan base.Since the turn of the new century, the brown-skinned beauty earned her stripes through word of mouth, small club tours and internet sales for her highly spirited, socially relevant and culturally bold mastery of song.

Largely regarded as a neo soul star, she found herself in the best company with her contribution to two all-star tribute projects: 'Forever, For Always, For Luther,' and 'We All Love Ella,' respectively.

True fans of Ledisi (pronounced led-uh-see) will also recall that she was featured on Rex Rideout's masterfully-produced Def Jam Records-inspired jazz project, 'Def Jazz' -- which was released in 2005.

The glossy projects, along with her two independently released recordings ('Soul Singer' and 'Feeling Orange But Blue Sometimes'), are among other major achievements for Ledisi, also including roles in the Broadway-bound musical 'The Color Purple,' and George C. Wolfe's critically acclaimed tour-de-force 'Caroline, Or Change.'

"I have wanted to be in the music business since I was a little girl," she added. "I was told I wasn't good enough and pretty enough to be here."

"I was about to give up and almost missed my blessings," she continued. "I am so happy I stayed. I would not trade anything for this feeling I am feeling right now. I am honored, blessed and speechless. I am being acknowledged by my peers and it is incredible."

Since the legendary Verve label -- recording home for Diana Krall, Natalie Cole and Queen Latifah's latest projects -- released 'Lost & Found,' Ledisi's momentum is steadily building in a much cluttered marketplace. Her grassroots media campaign, executed by music industry veteran Jai St. Laurent-Smyth, has proven to go the extra mile. That, and her recent performance at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Las Vegas, coupled with her being featured on 'The Bridge' with Chaka Khan helped bolster her prominence within the entertainment community.

"Ledisi is one of the most talented artists out there, period," label head Nate Herr said in a statement released to The BV Newswire. "She has an uncanny ability to connect with her audience like no one we've ever seen. Everyone at the label is thrilled that the Grammy voters took notice of Ledisi and 'Lost and Found,' and we're hoping that this will help her connect with a whole new audience.

Rideout, who has worked close with her on the major label recording projects, called her "a phenomenon," adding, "every once in a while people have the foresight to get it right. It's seldom that you come into contact with legendary talent."

Winners of the 50th Annual Grammy Awards will be announced on Feb. 10, 2008.