Paloma Dineli Chesky

Paloma is a unique young artist, Brazilian-American , she is not only a powerful performer that dominates the stage and electrifies her audience, but she is also an incredible songwriter.

It’s a rarity that a young singer with a distinctive voice knows that her future will focus on pursuing a musical journey that defies expectations or categories. “I don’t want to be put in a box,” says the vibrant, rising-star Paloma Dineli Chesky, who resides in New York City. “I love pop music that is highly produced, but I've always loved jazz and the older artists who are timeless. I'm exploring at this point in my life, blending the two, trying to find a cohesive voice. This is who I am.” On her new recording Memory, the New York-based polymath and her band reveal her jazz-inflective acoustic side with six personal originals and three covers that are meaningful to her, some of which independently appear on YouTube as pop-driven versions. Memory marks the beginning of a long and winding crossover musical career for the hybrid vocalist/composer who possesses raw talent of power and emotional depth beyond her years.

Critics rave: "Thrilling, Exciting And Amazingly Attractive Force" (Blues 21.com) "A Voice That Could Stop Traffic" (Steve Hard from Just Jazz) "The Vocal Phenomenon"(Broadway World) , Bob Legget (LA Music Critic) praises: "Her Music Shows Maturity Way Past her Years" Despite her youth, Paloma's vocal maturity is astonishing.

Singing, playing piano, and composing from a very early age, Paloma has performed her own compositions with the New York Philharmonic and has held solo concerts at leading NYC venues such as City Winery, Birdland, Cafe Wha and, Dizzy's Club.

Paloma is a fierce performer, her presence on stage is absolutely contagious! 

On new Album Memory the songs range from Paloma’s unique soulful blues opening on the classic “Summertime” (by George Gershwin and DuBose Heyward for the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess) to the end-song meditation of loss and chaos on her mellow-toned original “When the Moon’s Away.” “’Summertime’ is one of my favorite songs,” says Paloma. “But it’s been recorded so often that I wanted to give it a groove to create my own way of approaching it. As for my original tune, ‘When the Moon’s Away,’ I wanted to capture that pivotal moment where something good happens counteracted by a confusion of something awful bad. It’s like my lyrics say, ‘Do flowers always bloom when the moon’s away?’ People cry when they hear me sing this song. I think it speaks to people who experience so much love and light followed by the darkness creeping in.”

Memory is Paloma's most mature crossover project and displays her independent spirit. It’s stripped down and raw with live acoustic instrumentation. For this project she enlisted a talented quartet to support her, including tenor saxophonist Maxwell Barnes, bassist Chris Ramirez, drummer Danno Peterson and guitarist Michael Hilgendorf who also serves as Musical Director. “I wanted a mix closer to pop, so he was perfect,” she says, noting that she does not play piano on the recording. “He helped me to find the bandmates through his connections at the Manhattan School of Music.”

Other originals include the upbeat “Baby Face,” that opens with a deep bass stretch and ends up blooming into a tenor sax playful swing. “I wrote that when I was quite young and then dropped it,” Paloma says. “But it stuck in my head, so I finally finished it. And I came to thinking about my youth and how looks seem to matter more than your character. But this is my vision, so many years later, when you can still connect with your soul.”

On her sweet tune “Memory,” Paloma sings in her silky, romantic voice about saying good-bye—in this case her farewell to her family and friends after spending the summer in Brazil and was returning home to New York. Charged with Michael’s grooved guitar, Chris’s bass journey and Danno’s beats, the midtempo “Diamonds” develops through metaphors about being in the moment. “I’m not being literal so the song can be interpreted in different ways,”she says.

In her most popular song, the intoxicating “Sober Now,” Paloma moves into a poetic mode about the recovery from addictive relationships. It’s the confessional and universal that draws in an audience. She says listeners relate to it, whether it’s in the jazz mode or in her pop zone.

Paloma is very selective on tunes she covers. She visits one of her treasured songs, the traditional blues gem, “House of the Rising Sun,” that’s deeply resonating in her fierce, compelling delivery. She changes the mode with the exceptional Jobim bossa nova favorite, “Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars),” flawlessly sung in Portuguese. “It's a special song,” she says. ”I’m part Brazilian, so it’s fitting that I honor this side of me. Every time I sing it I feel peaceful and at home.”

She also says that it’s just one more example of how she’s embracing her many musical influences and channeling them into her singular sound. "I want to tie different styles and ideas together. What I’m showcasing is who I am now through chords and lyrics that tell a story. I am sharing my experiences and hoping to connect deeply with my audience."

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