New Orleans blues and jazz singer Sharon Martin is one of the treasures of the Crescent City. Singing professionally since the late 1980s, she is that 'mistress of coal soul' — a petite frame carrying one of the most powerfully soulful voices around, delivering songs from the soul whether the material is jazz, blues, country, or gospel.
Martin starred as Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill in New Orleans in 2012 (with a 2017 reprisal), earning a Big Easy Award nomination for best actress in a musical. She has toured and performed with artists ranging from Joe Sample to Dave Bartholomew to Deacon John to C. J. Chenier, opened for Roy Ayers, Gil Scott-Heron, Ronnie Laws, Buddy Guy, and Boz Scaggs, and appeared in two episodes of HBO's Treme as well as T.D. Jakes' film Woman Thou Art Loose.
A giver as well as a singer, Martin educates young musicians, fights for voting rights, and performs in clubs, on cruises, and at festivals across the globe. She continues to perform regularly at nightclubs and special events around New Orleans — including Cafe Istanbul, the New Orleans Jazz Museum's Chanteuse series, and the National Park Service's French Quarter concerts.
