Who is she?

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Livia Gazzolo is a Kurdish-American world music vocalist based in Harbert, MI whose work explores the connectivity of cultures through music, storytelling, and heritage. She is deeply invested in cultivating a global perspective—illuminating her Kurdish roots while introducing audiences to the commonalities and distinctions among cultural traditions. Over the past decade, Livia has developed an innovative repertoire that spans geography, epochs, language, and genre, drawing inspiration from artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Blossom Dearie, Helen Merrill, Elis Regina, as well as Kurdish artists such as Ciwan Haco, Berfin Aktay, and Sivan Perwer. With a combination of lilting vibrato and Middle Eastern melisma, she blends original jazz melodies with Brazilian Tropicália and Kurdish folk music to create a vibrant quilt of cultures in her performances and recordings. Most recently, she extended her artistic practice to include live performance in front of silent films from the early 1900's, using music as a modern lens by which to illuminate historical patterns in the films that are still relevant today. For more information about the silent film project, visit the Gazzolo Productions page.