Kimmie Horne: Detroit Jazz Royalty

“My dad was a professional musician … My uncle was one of the Fantastic Four and, of course, my great great aunt is the one and only Lena Horne, so the foundation has been set. I love music, but I started to feel that I wanted to see and support my peers who were out there performing and creating new music. The only way for me to do that was to create a platform in which I could invite them, pay them.”

Stylemaker Kimmie Horne

As Detroit jazz royalty, Kimmie Horne’s voicetress look has been seen and heard in performance halls from Japan, to Tokyo and Montreal to the opening act for the legendary Aretha Franklin. As the grand niece of Lena Horne, Kimmie Horne has traveled the world singing to adoring fans; it’s her work in Detroit with the Kimmie Horne Festival that she’s most engaged.

“I’ve launched the Kimmie Horne Jazz Festival, a free 2-day jazz festival and I’m so proud because it has grown so much bigger than myself. We have eight amazing performers every year, all kinds of jazz and the thing that I love most about the festival that we do every year is called ‘Sisters in Song,’ it’s me and another jazz singer collaborating on a song. Every year it’s something new that highlights my life.”

“I’m from a family of seven people. My dad was a professional musician and carpenter. My uncle was one of the members of the Fantastic Four and, of course, my great great aunt is the one and only Lena Horne, so the foundation has been set. I love music, but I started to feel that I wanted to see and support my peers who were out there performing and creating new music. The only way for me to do that was to create a platform in which I could invite them, pay them, and we get to share the stage and have a great time.”

As authentic as the flowing curls she displays on her crown to the fitted leggings holding her long curvy legs to the signature red lipstick that forms her face, Horne understands the assignment and approaches her looks often from the point of comfort and fun. “As an artist from Detroit, Motown set the stage of class, unity and coordination. It is our soundtrack. When I perform, the band coordinates with what I wear. I am very particular about the stage presentation because of Motown; that visual soundtrack has set a standard.”

The veteran vocalist and performer behind such singles as  “Lullaby of Birdland,” “So Nice to Come Home To,” and “Summertime” — Horne has shared stages with artists as diverse as Pieces of a Dream, Stanley Clarke, and the Neville Brothers to The O’Jays, Teddy Pendergrass, and Isaac Hayes.  

“I believe you can be sexy, classy, sassy and cool, fun, conservative but it’s how you carry yourself. I decide what I’m gonna wear depending on what I feel most comfortable in. It comes from comfort first of all because if I’m not comfortable on stage, I can’t perform at my best.”

Stylemaker Kimmie Horne