Diana Ross comes the Santa Barbara Bowl on Tuesday, June 13. | Credit: Courtesy CAA

The supreme pop-soul deity Diana Ross may be 79 now, but her legacy and ongoing relevance precede her — not to mention her elegant and soulful presence as a singer. The Detroit native’s deep well of radio gold with the Supremes going back to the ‘60s Motown hit machine launched her into a solo career, staying in the public ear through solo hits in and beyond the disco era. Her stamp of influence is undeniable on a hot list of major figures in pop and R&B, especially her sometimes-creative ally Michael Jackson, but also Beyonce, Madonna, and others walking the line between pop music sheen and funkier zones.

On her awards mantle are a 2016 Presidential Medal of Freedom and two Grammy Lifetime Achievement Awards — a solo artist, from 2012 and this year, as co-founder of the Supremes. But the Ross saga continues to expand, with the release of 2021’s Thank You, her 25th official studio album, and her first since 2006’s I Love You.

On Tuesday, June 13, she returns in the throes of her current, all-inclusively named “The Music Legacy Tour 2023” to the Santa Barbara Bowl, where we heard her as part of 2014’s “In the Name of Love” tour. Although the show is advertised as a banquet of Ross-related chart-topping hits and depth charges from the past, she has a fresh roster of material to dip into, if time and set-listing allow.

On “Thank You,” the title track and prime single from her latest album, elements of Ross’ musical style through the decades and changes are tucked into the production. On this simple, infectious anthem of gratitude, aspects of pop craft, old school R&B energies and Ross’ special blend of control and soul-inflected flair are fully intact.

Her upcoming Bowl appearance promises to be both a nostalgic journey over the past six decades, and a hint of more present and future tense musical matters still evolving.  See sbbowl.org

Login

Please note this login is to submit events or press releases. Use this page here to login for your Independent subscription

Not a member? Sign up here.