Montreal-based jazz singer Nikki Yanofsky has announced her new album Nikki By Starlight, via MNRK Music Group. A celebration of jazz for purists and new generations alike, Nikki By Starlight is comprised of 15 standards from legends Frank Sinatra, Chet Baker, Billie Holiday and more. Out October 21st, Nikki By Starlight was co-produced with the JUNO-winning producer/composer Paul Shrofel and features contributions from Stevie Wonder’s bandmate Greg Phillinganes, Nathan East (Bobby Womack, Herbie Hancock, Michael Jackson) and the iconic Cuban-American jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval.

Yanofsky also follows previously released tracks “Comes Love”, “I Get a Kick Out Of You”, “Crazy He Calls Me”, and “Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars (Corcovado)” with the French song “C’est Si Bon,” originally composed in 1947 by Henri Betti with lyrics by André Hornez. Popularized by Eartha Kitt, Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Barbara Streisand, and more, Yanofsky’s poised rendition follows in the footsteps of these classic standard bearers.

Yanofsky’s commitment to reimagining the standards rings true all throughout the album, even going so far as recording on a vintage RCA 77C, the microphone that was used by Ella Fitzgerald. Yanofsky’s transportive musical touch brings the Great American Songbook into the 21st century, providing a chance for new audiences and existing fans alike to fall in love with a refreshed style.

Yanofsky describes the process of recording this album as an invigorating and joyful time that allowed her to tap into the purest part of herself again. She reconnected with the classics on her own terms — especially as an artist who did her first show at just 12 years old, and sometimes felt like a “party trick” singing songs from a bygone era when she was so young. Even so, jazz was her first love, and this record is a true homecoming.

Ultimately, Nikki By Starlight is a mix of ballads, uptempo tracks and sambas. Plus, always one to take on a challenge, she gravitated towards tracks that are notoriously difficult to sing. She’s recruited some of the best names in the business in support: Greg Phillinganes is featured on “Crazy He Calls Me” and “West Coast Blues,” Nathan East provides bass on “Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars,” and Arturo Sandoval even makes an appearance with his signature trumpet on “Estate.”

With Nikki By Starlight, Yanofsky continues to prove her artistry – stemming all the way back to when she sang the National Anthem on live television at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver in front of 3.2 billion people. Yanofsky’s self-titled album Nikki, released in 2010, gained the attention of the late prolific songwriter Rod Temperton (“Thriller,” “Rock With You,” “Boogie Nights”), who took her under his wing becoming her mentor, creative coach and musical champion. Her sophomore effort Little Secret, found Yanofsky exploring the velvet-clad sweet spot between jazz and pop with bold sentiments that signaled a self-assured coming of age. In 2020 she released Turn Down The Sound, a 10-track LP (eOne Music) that showcases her independence and marks a newfound departure for her career as a young musician, earning praise upon release from Billboard, Uproxx, American Songwriter, and more. 

After stepping away for a time, Yanofsky writes in a letter about her homecoming to jazz, “My key still works. It’s not too late. Walking in on my own terms, even uninvited, I feel at home. You are familiar, safe and warm, and now that I’m here, I don’t ever want to know the cold again.”