Anita Canada

Audience members are drawn into the confident and clear vocal savvy of the vocalist, Anita Canada. Whether eating, dancing or sitting on chairs or sofas, Anita delivers and ensures that she receives from her audience, small or large groups. If you have an event such a 70th birthday bash, Anita ensures that your occasion features favorite and familiar songs, as well as some fresh and current that compliment the theme of the event. She and her band assists hosts in guaranteeing a smooth occasion from beginning to end, by adding music in between comments and providing recorded (or live) DJ music for the dance floor.

Anita has a background in teaching and marketing. Thus, client satisfaction and audience engagement is what she achieves at the end of every performance. Anita and her band performed at events with 300 member audiences, and those with smaller crowds of 40-100. It's not about the venue, it's about how to make sure that your audience is entertained in the most accommodating and yes ... fun and respectable ... manner, within the given time frame. Keep in mind, Anita has access to some of the greatest musicians in the metropolitan Atlanta area, and can secure them based on need and availability. Your event may not require a full band, only a few musicians with specific instruments designed to set the tone.

Over the years, Anita Canada has mesmerized audiences with a contralto range that adds jazzy urban folk, funk and swing to the most memorable standards of yesteryear and modern day classics, leaving you wanting a little extra for the road. Bottom line, Anita surrenders her soul to the words of a song, conveying its deepest depth of meaning. She enjoys artist/poet duets that mix "Jazz with Spoken Word," and she is totally in her element when performing jazz versions of classic rock, soul, folk and pop in her newest project of "Jazz in the Acoustic Realm," which features the natural sounds of guitar, congas and djembe.

Raised in Seattle, Washington, Anita was introduced at an early age to five specific genres of music by her father, the late Charles Paul Canada, a U.S. Navy veteran who served in Vietnam and who played the harmonica in a band during regular performances at the former Desert Inn and Stardust hotels in Las Vegas. "Dad gave me keepsake albums -- the afro beat sensations of Fela Kuti, the swinging blues of Bessie Smith, the folk rock of Bob Dylan, the passionate jazz of Billie Holiday, and the reggae rhythms of Bob Marley -- all of which "have impacted my evolving jazz versions."

Influences include Dee Dee Bridgewater, Dianne Reeves, Cassandra Wilson, and the greatness of Abbey Lincoln, Sarah Vaughn, Anita O'Day, Billie Holliday, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Nina Simone. And, she never leaves a show without her vocal finesse being compared to that of smooth jazz vocalist, Phyllis Hyman. "She is one of my all time favorites. I am humbled by this compliment that speaks to the passionate vocals she brought to every performance."

In addition to her allegiance to jazz, Anita served as lead vocalist for an indie rock band, Ulterior Motives; was lead vocalist for The Timothy Griffin Jazztet; provided background vocals to a gospel CD produced by renowned pianist, Dennis Nunnelley; has served as an understudy in the local stage play, Waiting for the Rainbows of Life, where she recorded and performs one of its most highly acclaimed tracks, "Do Right Man;" has been the featured vocalist at numerous private special events and fund raisers; has performed at such venues as the Marlee's Coffee & Tea House, Cafe 290, Legend Cafe, 191 Club, Footprints Cafe, Olde Towne Tavern and Grille, South DeKalb Music Festivals, Metro Fuxon, Moondance Restaurant and Lounge, CalaBar Grill, with a long run at Ziggy's Jazz and Blues, and more.

Recent Seattle venues included a full performance at The Esquire Club, backed by The Goody Bagg Band, and solos at the Paragon Bar and Grill, the Tea Palace, and Bake's Place, where Anita was welcomed to the stage by Seattle's Soul Songstress, Josephine Howell.

Anita sends a shout out to the late, Ben Wicker, a songwriter, producer, musician dear friend with whom she also shared the stage. In tribute to him, her first solo project will feature a few selections from Ben's original work, including "Private Eye."

Anita's vocals are rooted in the Church of Christ, where a cappella worship and praise is served on the regular, and with a joyful noise! Anita has been known to quiet the band in the middle of a set in order to incorporate a verse or two in a cappella. She has provided lead and background vocals to a worship and praise team for over 12 years. "Every once in awhile, I slip it in when the moment is right. My audience appreciates this unique freshness."

Anita works with a musician who can provide lighting, sound equipment (mics, stands, cords, speakers, monitors, and more) at request and for an additional fee. This can be discussed during consultation, and is based on needs at the venue and for the client.