Thornetta Davis: Northern Michigan‘s Adopted First Lady of Soul

May 12, 2004

“I always love coming up to Traverse City and hanging out with my other family,” says Thornetta Davis, speaking of the many friends she’s made through the years here, traveling from her home in Detroit to sing to a wildly enthusiastic group of fans.
On the phone, Thornetta’s honey-rich voice is warm as a snuggle, her words trailing off with the tinkle of silver bells. Even over the line from Detroit, she projects a sense of calm, centered confidence that comes across in her shows. “Centered” is a good word for her performance -- Davis sings from the center of her heart with a presence that simply owns the zone.
Newcomers and old friends will get a listen to that emotive power this weekend, May 14-15, when she performs a range of funk, soul, gospel and rock sounds at the Loading Dock in Traverse City in what has become an all-too-rare appearance through the years.

REALLY COMES THROUGH
“She has a huge heart and so much raw emotion in her voice -- it really comes through,” says Molly Malewitz, a Traverse City beautifican and ad hoc musicologist who has been friends with Davis for years now as well as her biggest booster in Northern Michigan.
“We just got to be really good friends through her music,” she adds. “Thornetta sounds better than ever now because she’s doing a lot of her own original material. She’s bigger than ever now in Detroit.”
In fact, Davis is a perennial winner at the Detroit Music Awards, winning on any number of years in the category of best blues, R&B, urban or funk vocalist. She’s also a sure bet among Metro Times readers for categories such as best blues vocalist.
Davis doesn’t like to be pegged to any particular style. She blew a largely female crowd away at the 1999 Lilith Fair at Pine Knob, but also enjoys singing gospel each Sunday on the nationally televised (UPN) Church of Today show. She released her 1996 CD, “Sunday Morning Music” on Sub Pop records, the same indie outfit that chronicled the grunge scene in Seattle with Nirvana and Soundgarden. She’s a regular on the blues festival circuit, but has also rocked out with bands such as the Chisel Bros., Big Chief, and her current act, the Thornetta Davis Band. She’s performed with both Kid Rock and Bonnie Raitt -- a good indication of the range of her musical interests.
Her songs have even been featured on episodes of “The Sopranos,” the hit HBO show which has a canny ear for showcasing little-known talent. Her song, “Cry,” was playing in the background of one episode where Tony Soprano narrowly avoided getting whacked.

ROOTS
“I like blues, rock, funk, and to have some fun when I’m onstage,” Davis says. “I’m looking forward to doing some recording and am writing songs right now.” Although she doesn’t play an instrument, Davis works out a melody and sings it for her band as part of her songwriting process.
Born and raised on Detroit’s east side, Davis still lives in the Jefferson and Chalmers neighborhood where she grew up. One of her songs, “Sunday Morning,” is a lament for the drastic decline of her neighborhood, which has been devastated by crack cocaine and poverty.
Davis grew up singing. “I basically sang around the house all the time. I loved to sing, and when I was 15, my sister approached me to enter a talent show,” she recalls. “From that time on, I knew I had to be on the stage.”
Although she comes across as a natural for the stage, she says she suffered from stage fright like most performers early on. “I had stage fright all through the beginning and I would choke up. But you just keep at it until it goes away.”
Since high school, Davis has been in a series of bands, including early girl groups Jas and Chanteuse, whose male back-up musicians tended to disappear for other opportunties. In 1983 she gave birth to her daughter, Wanakee, and took a year off from singing to work in the Sweet Dreams Candy Shop at Detroit Receiving Hospital.
But the path to her musical career arrived when she joined a group called Lamonte Zodiac and the Lovesigns. When singer Lamonte quit the band for a new gig in advertising, Davis stepped into his shoes to head-up the new group known as the Chisel Brothers. She was with the Chisels for eight years, a move which also brought her to the attention of audiences in Northern Michigan.
Thereafter, Davis sang with Sub Pop recording artists Big Chief and was featured on their two albums, “Mack Avenue Skull Game” and “Face.” She’s also appeared on Kid Rock’s albums. Ultimately, however, she was destined to star in her own band as a headliner sure to draw crowds.
Today, she’s wrapping up a six-year gig at the Music Menu in Greektown, a club which recently closed. If you’re in the Detroit area, you can catch her act at the Attic Bar in Hamtramck.
Or, check out the Thornetta Davis Band at the Loading Dock this weekend. “I’m doing my own thing in the city these days, but I’m looking forward to singing and having a lot of fun up north,” she says.