Yola

On February 21, 2020, Variety announced that she has been cast to play the role of singer Sister Rosetta Tharpe — dubbed the Godmother of rock and roll — in Australian director Baz Luhrmann’s still untitled drama on the life of Elvis Presley.

On 23 March 2019 Yola made her American television debut on CBS This Morning‘s Saturday Sessions segment, where she played selections from Walk Through Fire. She, alongside Sheryl Crow, contributed to two tracks on the debut album by The Highwomen.

Yola made a splash at the Newport Folk Festival 2019 with Rolling Stone proclaiming, "Yola became the single most sought-after voice at this year’s festival. She played a triumphant side-stage show, served as an unofficial member of The Highwomen, and added her own vocals to performances by everyone from Dolly Parton to Dawes, who let the fast-rising singer take over for the entirety of their 2009 song “When You Call My Name.” According to Glide Magazine, "People came from far and wide to hear Yola sing, either because they were enchanted by her excellent release from earlier this year Walk Through Fire, or because word of mouth had reached them that this was not to be missed."

Yola released her first solo EP, Orphan Offering, in 2016. In February 2019, she released her debut album Walk Through Fire on Dan Auerbach's Easy Eye Sound label, to much acclaim. The album title references both a fire which damaged Yola's home and an abusive relationship from which she escaped. AllMusic called the album "an extraordinary record, one designed to be part of a grand musical tradition, and it contains enough emotion and imagination to earn its place within that lineage." Brittney McKenna of NPR Music's First Listen declared, "It's the work of an artist sure to stun audiences for years to come." The Wall Street Journal stated, "The album is an introduction to a seasoned, major vocalist that stands to be remembered as a breakthrough."

Yolanda Quartey (born 1983), known professionally as Yola or Yola Carter, is an English musician, singer and songwriter from Bristol, England. She became the lead singer of the band Phantom Limb, who released their first album in 2010. She has sung backing vocals for numerous artists including Massive Attack, The Chemical Brothers and Iggy Azalea. Yola received four nominations at the 62nd Grammy Awards, including the all-genre Best New Artist category.