RN (a new MMW contributor!)
I just wanted to give everyone the heads up on French chanteuse Keren Ann, whose second album, Nolita, was just released on Blue Note. She was born in Israel to a Jewish dad and a half-Javanese mom, grew up in Paris and now spends half her time in NYC. Her second album is being released. People are comparing her to Norah Jones and Dido.

Surrounded by a fascinating mix of musical cultures from an early age, Keren Ann grew up listening to everything from French ‘variété’ and American folk to traditional Yiddish music. The budding young songwriter began writing her own material while still in her early teens, but devoted herself to her education after passing her ‘baccalauréat’, going on to study computer science, philosophy and psychology.