Bio

Michelle Willis is a Canadian singer, songwriter and keyboard player, now based in Edinburgh, Scotland.

As a kid growing up, singing and playing was a pathway to self expression. “In the 90s, the hits on the radio were largely by women like Shawn Colvin, Lauryn Hill, Amanda Marshall, Jann Arden, Whitney Houston, Alanis Morissette, Janet Jackson and Sarah McLachlan. They said how they felt, and to me their songs felt deep, clever, honest. It was a sound where all my teenage emotion could live and be perfectly expressed. Around the same time, I was singing Brahms, Bach and the blue hymnbook in a choir - all that melodramatic music was circling around.”

She later grew to learn the vocabulary of the 60s and 70s singer-songwriter era, a sound she has grown quite close to given her fixed position in two bands led by rock and roll hall of famer David Crosby. After studying jazz piano at Toronto’s Humber College, she set sights on folk and pop songwriting, taking inspiration from heavyweights Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Wonder, Carole King, Donny Hathaway, CSNY, Ray Charles, Jimmy Webb, Rufus Wainwright and The Beatles.

While living a little under a decade in Brooklyn NY, Willis cemented her place as an in-demand keyboard player and singer, touring and recording with a diverse array of artists such as David Crosby, Becca Stevens, Zac Brown Band, Iggy Pop, Laura Mvula and Michael McDonald. Michelle is an artist on GroundUP Music, a record label started by Snarky Puppy leader and founder Michael League, with whom she has regularly collaborated and toured with for over a decade.

Willis’ sophomore release, Just One Voice (2022), follows her full length debut, See Us Through (2016). The new album, out now on GroundUp Music, is an ambitious studio record plus a live and filmed concert showcasing guest performances by Crosby, Michael McDonald, Grégoire Maret, Becca Stevens, and Taylor Ashton.

Press

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"Immediately add to your spring jams playlist."
Alison Stewart, WNYC’s All Of It, NPR

"…sharp, hip, singer-songwriter music…If it were 1973 all over again, Willis would be touring with Dylan and releasing acclaimed albums for a generation to fall in love with."
Pop Matters

"Wistful, melancholic and invites introspection. Michelle's dulcet tones are the star of the show."
Errol Nazareth, host of CBC Radio's Big City Small World

“Singer/songwriter/keyboardist Michelle Willis couches her intimate lyrics and lissome vocals in airy, atmospheric arrangements, with masterful use of multi-tracked voice and choral arrangements.” “..Immediate spell-caster.”
Duane Verh, Roots Music Report
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“Sounds like God on a good day”
David Crosby, Crosby, Stills and Nash, The Byrds

"Got Sultry? Michelle Willis has plenty to go around, check her out"
James Williamson, Iggy and the Stooges

“A real songwriter album” Music O’Mania

“Her pristine vocals are gently haunting and her songwriting is strikingly accomplished and eloquently poetic."
Kerry Doole, Exclaim! Magazine

“Willis has the rare ability to place you directly into the music by connecting with you on an emotional level. ”
Kerry Martin, Producer of q, CBC Radio
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“See Us Through” is the kind of album that envelopes you in warmth and beauty... sweeping powerful vocals that stop you in your tracks and move you to tears.”
Lee Fraser, Cashbox Canada Magazine
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“You can drown in harmonies like these. Willis has power, she has range, she has gorgeous tone and the ability to pack a lot of emotion into even the smallest moment in time..”
Doug Gallant, The Guardian
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“From the start of the album to the finish, her vocals draw you in and don’t let you go.”
UCLA Radio
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“What makes this album stand out is Willis’ use of choirs both large and small as extra textures to frame and accent her own supple singling.”
George W. Harris, Jazz Weekly
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“Michelle Willis stood before 1,000 people at the Cologne stage...singing in a deep voice intimate, dreamy - melancholic songs with complex melodies - and moved the audience instantly captivated.”
Translated from German
Tim Schauen, DeutschlandFunk
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“The whole show was a sea of positive energy and adoration.”
Lee Fraser, Cashbox Canada Magazine

“Wholly assured, charismatic and enviably talented, the golden-voiced Willis launched into fantastic renditions of her originals... She's clearly set for big things.”
Hidzir Junaini, Bandwagon SG
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“Michelle had the crowd mesmerised by her performance. Around myself, there were many romantic swaying couples, enjoying her delicate, lyrical vocal style and harmonic richness.”
Jared McCunnie, Radio Monash
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Discography

Just One Voice // Michelle Willis 2022
Just One Voice (Live) EP // Michelle Willis 2022​​
See Us Through // Michelle Willis 2016
Shining Bits & Pieces // Michelle Willis 2010

Appears On:
The Art of Done // Tom Fitzgerald 2023
Live at the Capitol Theatre // David Crosby & The Lighthouse Band 2022
Bloodwonder // Lori Cullen 2022
For Free // David Crosby 2021
What To Wear In The Dark // Kate McGarry & Keith Ganz Ensemble 2021
Earth Voices // Amanda Tosoff 2021
Take Flight // Darrell Grant 2020
Home For The All O' Days // Adam Minkoff & Friends 2020
The Romantic // ​​Taylor Ashton 2020​
Wonderbloom // Becca Stevens 2020
Out of Dust // Laila Biali 2020​
Traces // Jessica Deutsch & Ozere 2020
Let Me Show You // Lydia Persaud 2019
...Flips The Script // MAZ 2018
Here If You Listen // David Crosby, Michael League, Becca Stevens, Michelle Willis 2018
​​Record Store Day 10th Anniversary // David Crosby & The Lighthouse Band 2017
​​Waxx Up! // Eric Legnini 2017
​Family Dinner Vol. 2 // Snarky Puppy 2016
By the Light of the Common Day (single) // David Crosby 2016
Lighthouse // David Crosby 2016
Hylia // Hylia 2016
Love & Lust // Jadea Kelly 2016
The Many Hats of Jory Nash // Jory Nash 2015
The Measure // The Measure 2013
So Close // Jessica Blake 2013
A Quiet Evening at Home // Nick Buzz 2013
Ready to Die // Iggy and the Stooges 2013
Coasting Notes // Three Metre Day 2012
Firmament // John Sheard 2010
Coventry Christmas // John Sheard 2009
The Game of Love // Jake Wilkinson Quintet 2009
Flashlight Radio // Flashlight Radio 2009

 
 
 

Booking

Booking //
Contact Here

Publishing //
Modern Works Music Publishing

Label // GroundUP Music
Kaitlin Palenscar

Publicity USA // Sacks & Co.
Krista Williams
Joe Cohen