Sharrie Williams is a blues, soul and rhythm and blues singer from Saginaw, United States. Born in 1965, she grows up in a musical family in Saginaw, Michigan, and later develops a style she describes as “Rockin’ Gospel Blues”, built around powerful vocals and gospel, blues and soul influences.

Early life and background

Williams is raised in the projects of Saginaw and spends her childhood surrounded by music. Her family includes a number of singers: her aunt and grandmother are jazz singers, her father sings gospel and jazz in the 1950s and 1960s, her brother is a gospel singer, and her mother is also a gospel singer. She describes the household as a lively, juke-joint-like environment with singing, drinking, dancing and blues music.

Career

In 1997, Williams teams up with The WiseGuys and begins appearing regularly in Chicago blues clubs including Kingston Mines and Buddy Guy’s Legends. By 1998, Sharrie Williams and The Wiseguys are performing in Europe, starting in Germany. By 2004, they tour widely across Europe and also perform in Africa, Canada and Great Britain.

Her 2004 album Hard Drivin’ Woman is released on the German label Crosscut Records and brings her wider attention in Europe and the United States. She later performs at major US festivals including the Chicago Blues Festival and the Pocono Blues Festival. Her CD sales at the Pocono Blues Festival are notably strong for that event and help introduce her to the American blues market.

Williams also collaborates with recording artists including Larry McCray and Ron Prince. Her cited influences include Koko Taylor, Etta James, Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin and Billie Holiday.

Recordings

Williams signs with the Canadian blues label Electro-Fi Records in 2007, and the resulting record is released worldwide in 2007. In 2011, she releases Out of The Dark. Songs associated with her repertoire include “Hard Drivin’ Woman”, “Travellin’” and “Blues Lover”.

Style

Her performances combine blues with gospel, soul and rhythm and blues, and she is known for strong, expressive vocals. Williams says she sings from lived experience and uses music to encourage people rather than let the blues dominate them.