Deelee Dubé won the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Competition in 2016, praised by Jazztimes for her ‘beguiling soulfulness.’ The daughter of South African pianist Jabu Nkosi, and granddaughter of saxophonist and bandleader Zacks Nkosi, Dubé boasts an impressive jazz lineage.

But she has spent the past few years making a name for herself, hustling around London’s various jazz venues. Since 2015, she has performed as a resident vocalist at Ronnie Scott’s Acoustic Jazz Lounge events, hosted by tenor saxophonist Renato D’Aiello. I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying Dubé’s effortless singing within intimate venues such as the Hampstead Jazz Club and the Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room.

Her debut album Trying Times proves she can translate just as well on record. The airy scats which begin opening track ‘Trying Times’ foreground the ease and resonance of her instrument. She is in great company with the likes of guitarist Russell Malone, pianist (and producer) Benito Gonzalez, and double bassist Corcoran Holt.

Largely a covers album, Dubé makes some bold creative and stylistic choices here. She strips away the psychedelia from jazz fusion number ‘500 Miles High’ (originally by Chick Corea and Return to Forever), delivering a more purist jazz take that doesn’t need to compete with the hippie-ish original. She is at her most dynamic with ‘On a Clear Day’ – a jazzy showtune from On a Clear Day You Can See Forever – which sees Dubé adding her own vocal touches and straying beyond the templates laid down by Barbra Streisand and Frank Sinatra.

Trying Times also hints at Dubé’s songwriting potential with the mellow melancholy of ‘Still Trying’ (a co-write with pianist Alex Webb), and the sweeping climax of ‘Joy’ (co-written with Dubé’s collaborator Renato D’Aiello).

Dubé says: ‘I am so delighted to be finally sharing this new body of work and labour of love with you all during these challenging times. I do hope that it will offer you all some glimmering hope and rays of light and love for much brighter days to come.‘