Lulu Hughes

Blue-eyed soul chanteuse Lulu Hughes was born and raised in Quebec, first earning attention as a member of the Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir. In the decade to follow she kicked around the local scene fronting her own blues band, earning frequent comparisons to Janis Joplin, in addition to singing backup for everyone from Too Many Cooks to Barry White. A sought-after voice-over talent who lent her skills to advertising campaigns for Coca-Cola, McDonald's, and Toyota, Hughes finally landed her breakout vehicle in 1999, when she was cast as Marie-Jeanne in the David Bowie-inspired musical theater spectacle Starmania. The attendant publicity guaranteed her strong label interest at the end of her two-year stint with the production, and in 2002 she issued her self-titled Musicomptor debut. Crazy Mama! followed four years later.