Dee Dee Bridgewater (born Denise Eileen Garrett, May 27, 1950, Memphis, Tennessee) is an American jazz singer, actress, and producer who holds three Grammy Awards and a Tony Award. She launched her career with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra in the early 1970s, won the Tony for her role as Glinda in the original Broadway production of The Wiz (1975), and has spent much of her adult life based in Paris. Her wide-ranging discography spans jazz standards, African music, New Orleans soul, and tribute albums to Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday; she is also a UN FAO Goodwill Ambassador and the founder of The Woodshed Network, a mentorship program for women in jazz.
PBS aired a one-hour special 'International Jazz Day from Abu Dhabi' featuring Bridgewater's performance of 'The Thrill Is Gone'.
Carnegie Hall announced Bridgewater as special guest for NYO Jazz 2026, a program for teen jazz musicians.
A short film 'If You Believe' marking 50 years of The Wiz, featuring Bridgewater as original Glinda, was released on her YouTube channel.
Bridgewater released Elemental (DDB Records/Mack Avenue), a duo album with pianist Bill Charlap, which debuted at the Hollywood Bowl and received a 2026 Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album.
France awarded Bridgewater the Officier dans l'ordre de la Légion d'Honneur on April 25, 2025, aboard the French warship Mistral in New Orleans.
Dee Dee Bridgewater closes the festival with WE EXIST! - a programme blending jazz, soul and civil rights-era songs, performed with an all-female trio.
The Dee Dee Bridgewater Quartet brings their "We Exist!" programme to Neckar Forum Esslingen as part of Jazzfestival Esslingen 2026.
The legendary WDR Big Band and vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater present a programme of classic jazz and contemporary arrangements.
The WDR Big Band joins forces with jazz icon Dee Dee Bridgewater for an evening of energetic big band music and timeless jazz standards.
