Nell Simmons-Bradley

Born: New Orleans — R&B/soul vocalist; Team John Legend on NBC's The Voice (Season 27)

Nell Simmons-Bradley is a New Orleans native with a voice steeped in the spirit of '60s R&B, pop, and soul. Raised singing in church and seasoned on the talent-competition circuit, she spent years touring the nation as a background vocalist for Trombone Shorty — with appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. In 2025 she stepped into the national spotlight on The Voice, joining John Legend's team, and released her debut single “Therapy.”

Why We Love Nell Simmons-Bradley

Nell Simmons-Bradley sings like the greats she grew up on — velvet, grit, and church, all at once. She's spent years making other people's stages shine, from Trombone Shorty's national tours to residencies at the Windsor Court and the Nopsi Hotel, and now it's her turn: “Therapy” is the sound of an artist who's done the work and knows exactly who she is. Old-school glamour, new-school drive — New Orleans R&B doesn't get more genuine than this.

Biography

From Church Pews to Center Stage

Born in New Orleans, Nell Simmons-Bradley began singing in church as a child and was entering talent competitions by grade school, developing a lush, soulful tone that paid homage to the greats while remaining distinctly her own. In 2004 she auditioned for American Idol at the New Orleans Superdome, an experience that sharpened her craft — and she briefly considered a very different path, studying at Delgado Community College and Southern University at New Orleans with an eye on becoming a veterinarian if music didn't work out.

Music won. By her late teens she was performing on the French Quarter with artists like Erica Falls and traveling to New York to learn the industry, and she soon landed the gig that would define her next chapter: touring the nation as a background vocalist for Trombone Shorty. The role put her on Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and the Macy's Day Parade — big stages for a singer who knew how to make every one of them feel intimate.

Nell doesn't just perform songs — she tells the truth, unapologetically and with heart.

— Los Angeles Weekly Times

In 2024 she held residencies at the Nopsi Hotel and the Windsor Court's Polo Club, and in 2025 she took the biggest stage yet: The Voice, Season 27, where her audition — Diana Ross's “Love Hangover” — earned a turn from John Legend and a spot on his team. That spring she released her debut single, “Therapy,” and she now holds down a weekly Friday Set at the Virgin Hotels' Commons Club, 7 to 9 p.m. every Friday. With more new music on the way, Nell Simmons-Bradley is just getting started.