Anaïs Reno
Anais_Reno_EPK_092425
Anaïs Reno is a New York City–based jazz singer and composer whose artistry is anchored in a deep love of lyricism and performance. Whether interpreting the Great American Songbook, shaping her own compositions, or reimagining jazz standards, she approaches every phrase with nuanced attention to meaning and a musician’s sense of rhythm. A recent graduate of SUNY Purchase where she studied jazz performance, Anaïs is a four-time YoungArts winner and recipient of the Ben Tucker Jazz Award at the American Traditions Competition, the Mabel Mercer Foundation Competition, and the Julie Wilson Award. She has drawn wide acclaim for her ability to embody the story within a song, delivered through her “evocative phrasing and warm, resonant, velvet tone,” according to The Jazz Page. Regarding a recent performance, Bistro Awards praised her “stellar take on Judy Garland’s ‘The Man That Got Away’… an excitement level nearing that of Judy Garland’s original, but with a stripped-down, raw-edged quality,” and JazzBuffalo observed that her work “blends sophistication, warmth, and a depth that continues to defy her youth.”
Anaïs has had the opportunity to perform on several celebrated stages. In New York, she has appeared at Birdland (including a week-long engagement stepping in for Tierney Sutton in 2022), Carnegie Hall, Dizzy’s Club, Madison Square Garden, Mezzrow, The Django, Ornithology Jazz Club, the White Plains Jazz Festival, the Harbor Jazz Festival in Stony Brook, NY, and the Valhalla Boathouse Theater in South Lake Tahoe, CA. She has also frequently headlined Chris’ Jazz Café in Philadelphia, Blue Strawberry in St. Louis, and internationally at PizzaExpress in London’s Soho, the Edinburgh Jazz Festival, Crazy Coqs, Bechstein Hall, and Watermill Jazz. In 2021, she joined Idina Menzel, Stephen Colbert, and others in NYCNext’s video project celebrating New York’s reopening, singing Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind”. That same year, she sang “America the Beautiful” for the nationally televised Mets/Yankees game on the 20th anniversary of 9/11 at CitiField. Upcoming appearances include her headlining debut at Ronnie Scott’s in London as part of the London Jazz Festival, the Bebop Club in Buenos Aires, and the Attucks Jazz Series in Norfolk, VA.
Anaïs’ recording career began when she was 16 years old, already reflecting her attention to detail then. Her debut album, Lovesome Thing (2021), a tribute to Ellington and Strayhorn featuring Emmet Cohen, rose to number six on the jazz charts, celebrated for the way she infused classic material with fresh interpretive insight. The next year, she was asked by baritone-saxophonist Gary Smulyan to collaborate on an album of unknown Tadd Dameron songs with lyrics. In 2024, she released a live album recorded at PizzaExpress in London, and her recent sophomore studio record, Lady of the Lavender Mist (Club44 Records), with Peter Bernstein, David Wong, and Joe Farnsworth, has been met with extraordinary praise. Its title track is an obscure Ellington cut paired with lyrics of her own. Wild Mercury Rhythm called the album “the best vocal recording this year,” while Bebop Spoken Here lauded her as “a gifted, solidly swinging, and playful voice… a throwback to the more deeply resonant and hell-bent, fearless female jazz vocalists of old.”
For Anaïs Reno, lyricism and nuanced performance are crucial—inspiring her as a composer, influencing her interpretations of standards, and grounding her ability to connect with audiences. With her recognizable voice and respect for the history of jazz, she is honoring tradition while working to shape her own sound.
Performance at CitiField in NYC on 20th Anniversary of 9/11 at Mets/Yankees Game: https://youtu.be/lI1A97Cwv2I?si=_sLrcrXuNd8zjRPn
PRESS
NYC Jazz Record by Scott Yanow
“With the release of Lady of the Lavender Mist, Reno shows that she is quickly moving to the top of her field. Her interplay with Bernstein, who takes many tasteful solos, and the supportive rhythm section, is a constant delight throughout this set. Already a major jazz vocalist at age 21, Anaïs Reno is carving out her own path in the jazz world.”
https://nycjazzrecord.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tnycjr202508_v5.pdf
August 7, 2025Wild Mercury Rhythm by C. Michael Bailey
“The best vocal recording this year… this vocalist, supported by these musicians, achieves perfection.”
https://www.wildmercuryrhythm.com/p/anais-reno-lady-of-the-lavender-mist?utm_campaign=email-half-post&r=2kx7vs&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
LATEST ALBUM: Lady of The Lavender Mist – Anais Reno
