Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/753330
92 MICHIGANAVEMAG.COM From Rufus Wainwright to NPR's Ari Shapiro to Chicago's own Ikram Goldman, the new album from interntional cult favorite Pink Martini (pictured) features collaborations with notable personalities of all stripes. PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARIA PONCE BERRE (GOLDMAN); CHRIS HORNBECKER (PINK MARTINI) THE QUEEN OF CHICAGO'S FASHION SCENE, I RAM GOLDMAN, EMBRACES ANOTHER OF HER PASSIONS WITH A BALLYHOOED PERFORMANCE ON PINK MARTINI'S NEW ALBUM, JE DIS OUI!. BY J.P. ANDERSON IN THE PINK Chicago fashionistas know Ikram Goldman as the city's premier arbiter of style, but these days she's got our ear for a different reason: Her star-making appearance on international cult fave band Pink Martini's just-released new album, Je Dis Oui!, where she sings lead vocals on the Arabic track "Al bint al Shalabiya." Band founder Thomas Lauderdale (who met Goldman several years ago and to whom Goldman introduced the song, by Middle Eastern star Fairouz) raves of her preparation for the recording process. "She trained ferociously, like an Olympic athlete," he marvels. "She had daily vocal lessons [and] spent hours and days and nights thinking [about] how she wanted to phrase. The self-discipline and commitment she demonstrates leave all of us completely thunderstruck ... and in love." Goldman herself, a self- described "huge fan" of Pink Martini for years, describes performing with the band on stage in Paris and London during its fall 2016 tour as "like an out-of-body experience." As far as future performing projects, Goldman leaves the door open—at least a smidge. "I love being a shopgirl, and that's never going to change. But obviously, if Thomas asks me to sing another song, I will jump on it in a heartbeat." Ikram Goldman performs with Pink Martini in two New Year's Eve shows at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. pinkmartini.com; ikram.com . STYLE IKRAM 'S IT LIST