Tony nominee Vanessa Williams has returned to the recording studio to record her first pop album in 15 years.
The first single from the record, "Legs (Keep Dancing)," dropped with little warning April 26, as did the energetically ebullient music video. Watch below.
The Legs Are The Last To Go was the title of the 2008 memoir by the late stage and screen actress Diahann Carroll, and it was that title that inspired Williams' return to the studio. “Diahann played my mother in a movie I produced, The Courage to Love, and has always been a huge inspiration for me,” shared Williams. “I remember seeing her talking to Oprah about her autobiography. She spoke so beautifully and confidently about her age and power and the fact that beauty fades but your legs give you strength and are the last to go.”
An 11-time Grammy nominee, Williams had a thriving career in the pop music scene throughout the late 20th and early 21st centuries, releasing eight solo albums, one live album, and three compilation albums. Following the release of her eighth album, The Real Thing, Williams focused her career on acting and the stage, appearing on Broadway in Sondheim on Sondheim, A Trip to Bountiful, After Midnight, and POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive. She is set to return to the stage next season in London's West End, as Miranda Priestly in Elton John's musical adaptation of The Devil Wears Prada.
In addition to the surprise song and record announcement, Williams has formed her own recording label, Mellian Music, and a joint venture agreement with Mod Squad, LLC, which is distributed by GoDigiPath, LLC, in association with ADA Worldwide.
The upcoming record, currently untitled, will be released later this year. The album is expected to embrace all of the genres Williams has become known for, including Pop, R&B, Latin, Jazz, and Dance music. The album is executive produced by Mellian Music, Mod Squad, LLC, and Christopher Todd Hall.
“Legs (Keep Dancing)” was co-written with songwriter and producer Chantry Johnson, songwriter Kjersti Long, and songwriter and producer Kipper Jones, who co-penned Williams’ early classics, “The Comfort Zone” and “The Right Stuff.”
