Christie Dashiell, jazz mezzo
Washington, DC-born and North Carolina-raised, 2X Grammy-nominated and NAACP Award–winning vocalist, composer, and educator Christie Dashiell stands at the intersection of jazz, R&B, gospel, and soul. Celebrated for her expressive improvisation and warm, clear tone, she has emerged as one of today’s most compelling voices.
Growing up in a musical family, Christie has been singing all of her life. She is the third of four multi-talented and musical children of jazz bassist, Carroll Dashiell, Jr. Her musical lineage is deeply rooted.
Christie is a graduate of Howard University and the Manhattan School of Music. While at Howard, Christie sang in the university’s premier vocal jazz ensemble, Afro-Blue. As a member of the Afro-Blue, she appeared on NBC’s “The Sing Off.” She has twice received recognition in DownBeat Magazine’s Student Music Awards as Outstanding Soloist and Best Vocalist in the Graduate College division and was selected as a semifinalist in the 2015 Thelonious Monk Institute International Vocals Competition.
In 2016, Dashiell released her debut solo album, Time All Mine, debuting on Billboard’s Jazz Album and Contemporary Jazz Album Charts at numbers thirteen (13) and twenty-two (22), as well as JazzTimes’ Top 50 Writer’s Ballots, Critics’ Poll. In addition to performing with her quartet, she works with many artists including Grammy-Nominated vocal ensemble, Sweet Honey in the Rock. She has appeared as a featured artist on Blue Note Record’s, Supreme Sonacy, Marquis Hill’s album, The Way We Play, Wynton Marsalis’ work, “The Ever Fonky Lowdown” with Wynton Marsalis and The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, the social-justice compilation album, Black Lives: From Generation to Generation and most recently a co-led project with Grammy winning drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, We Insist 2025!; a powerful reimagining of Max Roach’s landmark Freedom Now Suite, blending jazz, gospel, soul, and Afro-diasporic rhythms to confront contemporary struggles for justice. Released on Candid Records, the album honors the spirit of the original while offering a bold, modern call to action through voice, rhythm, and resistance. Christie has been seen in concert on prestigious national and international stages around the world including, Jazz at Lincoln Center Shanghai, The Baku Jazz Festival in Azerbaijan, and Bunkamura Orchard Hall in Tokyo, and The North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam, Holland to name a few.
Dashiell is on faculty at Howard University and The University of the District of Columbia.
Christie’s sophomore album, Journey In Black, was nominated for a 2025 Grammy Award in the category of Best Jazz Vocal Album, and deemed a “masterpiece” by Downbeat Magazine, features seven original compositions and two arrangements that explore themes of freedom, legacy, grief and joy. Funded in part by Chamber Music America’s Performance Plus Grant, the collection of music fuses the sounds of improvised music and various styles of Black American Music. Titled Journey in Black, the album boasts a stellar cast of musicians, including Shedrick Mitchell, Marquis Hill, Allyn Johnson, Romeir Mendez and Carroll Dashiell, III with creative guidance from NEA Jazz Master, Dianne Reeves. Christie will have a new release out Summer 2027.
The co-lead the recording, WE INSIST 2025! With Terri Lyne Carrington was nominated for a 2026 Grammy Award in the category of Best Jazz Vocal Album and won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Album.