Linda Tillery

Linda Tillery
Tillery (center) performing with The Cultural Heritage Choir in July 2008
Tillery (center) performing with The Cultural Heritage Choir in July 2008
Background information
Birth nameLinda Joyce Tillery
Born (1948-09-02) September 2, 1948 (age 76)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • musician
  • producer
  • songwriter
  • arranger
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • drums
  • percussion
Years active1968–present
Labels
  • RCA
  • Umbrella
  • CBS
  • Olivia
  • 411/Redwood
  • Music for Little People
  • EarthBeat!
  • Round Whirled
WebsiteTillery's archived website

Linda "Tui" Tillery (born September 2, 1948)[1][2] is an American singer, percussionist, producer, songwriter, and music arranger. She began her professional singing career at age 19 with the Bay Area rock band The Loading Zone. She is recognized as a pioneer in women's music, with her second solo album titled Linda Tillery released on Olivia Records in 1977. In addition to performing, she was the producer on three of Olivia's first eight albums.[3] Within the women's music genre, she has collaborated with June Millington, Deidre McCalla, Barbara Higbie, Holly Near, Margie Adam, and others.[4] Tillery was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1997 for Best Musical Album for Children.[5]

Tillery has been a professional musician for her entire adult life and has had a long career as a backing or supporting vocalist for mainstream artists as diverse as Santana, Bobby McFerrin, Huey Lewis and the News and the Turtle Island String Quartet. In the early 1990s, she began exploring the roots music of enslaved Africans and the African diaspora, forming the group The Cultural Heritage Choir.

  1. ^ Carnes, Jim (August 18, 2008). "They'll Sing for Peace and Change". Sacramento Bee (Metro Final ed.). Sacramento, California. p. Explore, EX11.
  2. ^ "Linda's Biography". lindatillery.net. Archived from the original on April 7, 2017. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  3. ^ "Olivia Records Discography". queermusicheritage.com. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  4. ^ "Acclaimed singer Linda Tillery takes on theater". SFGate. San Francisco Chronicle. August 18, 2011. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  5. ^ "Grammy Award Results for Linda Tillery". grammy.com. The Recording Academy. Retrieved June 17, 2017.