Having grown up on the music of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nat King Cole, the great American songbook is the first love of vocalist Lydia Yates. With career beginnings in the vibrant Birmingham jazz scene, Lydia returns to her roots to share her singular voice. She combines playful technique and rich emotionality, making audiences feel right at home in the warmth and timbre of her honest expression. Listeners have called Lydia a “Birmingham staple” as well as a “dynamic and grounding force” in her performance. Her debut jazz EP, “From Lydia With Love” showcases her infectious love for the music and the tradition as she pours tenderness and presence into every phrase. Lydia is trained in many styles, and is a very active part of Birmingham’s own regional theatre scene. Tonight, she is joined by the incomparable Jonathan Harms on guitar.