Lizzie Emeh Pic: Emily Mary Barnett

Award-winning jazz singer Lizzie Emeh is kicking off the London Jazz Festival with a performance at The Albany in Deptford on Friday.

Emeh, who in 2009 was lauded as the first solo artist with a learning disability to release an album, is launching new music with a concert at The Albany.

“Eclectic, wide-ranging and with lots of soul”, Emeh says of her music: “It’s coming from different situations. I sing from the heart and I sing about true life. Every single track has a story behind it. I am opening up the doors of my life to show that anything is possible.”

Her new EP ‘The Clan’ is the first in her ‘See Me’ trilogy. Two additional EPs, ‘My Maboo’ and ‘Meds’, are set for release in 2016.

Emeh co-writes all her songs but never puts the lyrics down on paper due to her inability to read and write. Instead she forms words and sentences in her head and works with musicians to develop the melodies she wants.

Since her debut album Loud and Proud was released six years ago, the artist, who has Irish and Nigerian roots, has won two national awards for her achievements in music: Radar People of the Year and Champion of the Year at the Ability Media International awards.

She has collaborated with a range of different artists and songwriters, teaming up with Beverly Knight in 2012 for the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games.

Originally a part of the Jazz Week at the Camden Festival, The London Jazz Festival has existed in its current form since 1992. It has grown to become London’s largest city-wide music festival.

This year’s festival opens on November 13 and runs until November 22.

Friday’s concert will start at 7.30 at The Albany in Deptford. Emeh will be joined on stage by a 10-piece live band.

By Anja Grøner Krogstad