Summer Festival Concert: Whitney Shay Trio

The Library’s 2023 Summer Festival Concerts are sponsored by the Friends of the Coronado Library and by the Hotel Del Coronado. Concerts take place every other Friday from June 16-August 25. Doors open 15 minutes prior to each performance.

Five-time San Diego Music Award Winner and Billboard #1 blues artist Whitney Shay and her trio bring their electric energy and soulful style to the Winn Room. Accompanied by Jodie Hill on bass and Joe Amato on guitar, this powerhouse trio will be bringing the blues to life. 

Whitney Shay - Vocals: With sparkly dresses, fiery tresses, and a talent rivaled only by her unstoppable hustle, Whitney Shay is one #busylittlesinger. In her hometown of San Diego, Shay has been honored with five San Diego Music Awards, and a San Diego CityBeat Magazine "Best Of" Award. Shay’s latest release on Ruf Records, Stand Up! debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues charts and also reached #1 on the Roots Music Report. Shay has received high praise from music critics calling the singer “a future blues icon” (Blues Matters!), “one of the next best things in soul music” (Blues and Rhythm Magazine), and “the epitome of a rising star” (Elmore Magazine). Shay’s tracks have been placed in TV/film, including shows on NBC, Fox, HBO, Bravo, BET, Hulu, and Tyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeral. 

Joe Amato - Guitar: Joe Amato received his formal education while studying jazz and classical guitar at the acclaimed University of North Texas, and went on to graduate from Southwest Texas State. He received a real-life musical education touring with bands all around the southern United States. He moved to San Diego with his wife and three daughters in 2004, and began to study everything the guitar could do: jazz, rock, samba, classical, tango, pop, country, funk. 

Jodie Hill - Bass: Jodie Hill grew up in  Columbus, Ohio. Her parents both played instruments and passed on their love for music when (at the age of 12) Jodie picked up a trombone. At 16, after seeing The Beatles perform on The Ed Sullivan Show, Hill realized the bass was her true instrument and fervently began to study it. Her first job as a bassist was in a Tijuana Brass band formed with several high school friends. She continued her bass studies at the Berklee School of Music in Boston and eventually ended up in New York City. In New York, she was able to study with some of the world’s finest bassists, and she worked her way into the jingle and recording business. She performed in the New York City area for over 30 years in various styles of music including country, rock, Top 40, and jazz. In 2010 she relocated to San Diego and began playing with Whitney Shay soon thereafter. Hill works in numerous configurations around town including three big bands, with blues guitarist Robin Henkel, with the Gypsy Swing Cats, and various other projects of differing genres.

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