Sharon Jones (singer)

Sharon Lafaye Jones (born May 4, 1956) is an American soul/funk singer. She is the lead singer of Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, a soul and funk band based out of Brooklyn, New York. Jones experienced a breakthrough success relatively late in life, releasing her first record when she was 40 years old. In 2014, Jones was nominated for her first Grammy for Best R&B Album for Give the People What They Want.

Early life

Jones was born in North Augusta, South Carolina, adjacent to Augusta, Georgia, to mother Ella Mae Price Jones, and father, Charlie Jones. Jones' mother raised her deceased sister's four children as well as her own children. Jones is the youngest of six children: Dora, Charles, Ike, Willa, Henry and Sharon. Her mother moved the family to New York at an early age. As a child, she and her brothers would often imitate the singing and dancing of James Brown. Her mother happened to know James Brown as he was also from Augusta.

Jones grew up in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. In 1975, she graduated Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn. She attended Brooklyn College.

Sharon Jones

Sharon Jones may refer to:

Sharon Jones (figure skater)

Sharon Jones (born 24 April 1964) is an English former competitive ice dancer. With partner Paul Askham, she is the 1985–1988 British national champion. They represented Great Britain at the 1988 Winter Olympics, where they placed 13th.

Jones married Stephen (Steve) Baker, a former pair skater who competed at the 1976 World Junior Championships. Their son, Jean-Luc, is the 2014 World Junior ice dancing champion competing with Kaitlin Hawayek for the United States. The couple work as coaches in Seattle. They coached their son during his earlier partnership with Joylyn Yang.

Competitive highlights

(with Askham)

References