Equally at home in the most intimate New York and international jazz clubs (as well as the stately magnificence of Carnegie Hall' Weill Recital Hall), Shipley's jazz and R&B vocal pyrotechnics have put him in a category that is singularly his own.
An Army-brat son of a jazz musician, his musical journey began when Leslie Uggams discovered him singing in Atlanta. She beckoned him North and introduced him in a solo show to a celebrity-packed room at the Claridge in Atlantic City. This then hit the New York club scene, performing at various jazz venues. Before long, he rose to new heights, performing an SRO concert in the Weill at Carnegie Hall, playing the Spoleto Festival and performing in a one-man Off-Broadway show, “Broadway Goes Jazz.”
Having just completed a three year stint on Broadway, in the production of “Miss Saigon,” Thos recently appearted in a “Lyrics & Lyricists” tribute to Duke Ellington at the 92nd St. Y. Thos' regional theatre credits include acting roes in “Five Guys named Moe” at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, and the Harold Arlen musical “Dreamland” under the artistic aegis of Peter Matz and Leonard Foglia at the Sharon Stage.
Internationally, Shipley has headlined twice on tours of select jazz clubs in Japan and most recently at Harrys in Singapore. Of his awards from his professional peers he says,' The most thrilling was the MAC Award for Jazz Vocalist, that was presented by one of my favorite jazz artists, the one and only Al Jarreau.”
So stop, look and listen -- to Thos Shipley.
Awards:
Bistro Award, MAC 5 Times for Outstanding Jazz Vocalist
