Judith Hill has spent most of her musical career in the background.
But the Huffington Post reports the singer who made a name for herself as a back up singer for such stars as Stevie Wonder is about to emerge with her debut solo album later this year.
She’s currently on tour with Josh Groban and turned heads with her planned duet with Michael Jackson on his This Is It tour right before his death.
The tour of course never happened, but her tribute song at Jackson’s televised memorial service and in the gloved ones This is It documentary grabbed the musical world’s attention.
More recently she appeared on TV’s The Voice making it all the way to the top eight of the competition.
“Growing up, I was heavily influenced by my mother and the Japanese community in Los Angeles,” she told blogger Gil Asakawa. “I have visited Japan several times and connected with my family there. Musically, I’ve incorporated traditional Japanese flavors in my pop songs, or sometimes I will sing little phrases in Japanese.”
Hill’s mother is Japanese, her father African American.
You can read more about her upcoming album, her time on The Voice and life as a background singer in the Huffington Post