- Her father was a principal in the Detroit public schools, and her mother was a defense contract administrator for the U.S. government.
- She started playing piano at age seven and attended Cass Technical High School. She graduated from Howard University, one of the first students to earn a jazz studies degree there. She earned an M.A. in ethnomusicology from the University of Pittsburgh.
- Her jazz improvisations can be heard on albums she recorded with saxophonist-composers Ornette Coleman and Oliver Lake, drummer Ralph Peterson Jr., bassist Charlie Haden, drummer Paul Motian, and many others.
- Has three children: Laila, Barbara and Wallace.
- Of Cherokee ancestry.
- Musical inspirations include Cecil Taylor, Herbie Hancock and McCoy Turner.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content