Music surrounded Chelsey Green growing up. Her father, Craig Green, played as the drummer in the highly-regarded high school jazz-funk band, Kashmere Stage Band. Her parents met during fundraising for the band’s trip to Europe. At two years old, her parents taught her “Mary Had a Little Lamb” on the keyboard, and at four, her mother, Cheryl Carr-Green, started her on the violin.
“All the records we listened to, I could always pull out the string section,” Carr-Green said. “I said, ‘If I have a daughter, I’d like her to play violin.’”
Today, Green wows crowds with her violin. She performed at the third annual Women in Jazz Festival on Saturday alongside award-winning artists Pamela Hart, Jazmin Ghent and Jeanette Harris at Austin PBS.
But this certainly wasn’t her first rodeo — Chelsey’s experience includes performances with Stevie Wonder on his Songs in the Key of Life tour, Lizzo at the 62nd GRAMMY Awards, CBS’ “The Late Show,” NPR’s “Tiny Desk” and a solo performance at Carnegie Hall at the age of 16.
Chelsey grew up playing classically and wanted to play orchestral scores for movies, but when she went to Peabody Conservatory to earn her master’s, her interest changed to jazz. While at UT, she didn’t join any jazz programs, but she credits UT as a starting point for her success.
“(That) story … has led her to becoming this phenomenal artist,” Craig said. “To achieve heights that we had never imagined.”
Saturday marked Chelsey’s return to the festival for a second year, and she said this crowd is always an exciting one because of its engagement with the performers.
“I always feel like our show is about connection and community,” Chelsey said. “(I was) really excited to play our music and engage (with the audience), but also to exchange what the message is behind my music.”
Chelsey found relatability within the crowd, giving context to the real-life inspirations for her original songs. She asked the audience which cover songs they knew, and changed the lyrics of Tevin Campbell’s “Can We Talk” to relate to modern dating life, prompting the audience to erupt in laughter.
“(I try) to go the scope of the genre, of what jazz feels like to me,” Chelsey said. “The root of (jazz) is improvisation … rhythm and soul. There’s a rhythm to the audience, so I try to pick up cues on what they’re responding to, what they feel interested in and flow with that.”
As Chair of the Board of Trustees at the Recording Academy, Chelsey sets two milestones for the Academy as the first Black woman and youngest person elected to the position.
In addition to her role at the Academy, Chelsey’s latest project involves a music video for a song set to release soon. Most importantly, Chelsey said she looks forward to some time to focus on herself.
“None of us can be the best person if we’re not taking care of ourselves,” Chelsey said. “(I’m) finding ways to be more mindful of self-care (while) keeping all the irons on fire.”
