Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings - "8 Day of Hanukkah"

As every Holiday Season, this month I’ll be choosing only Holiday Songs from as many holidays as I can.

Sharon Lafaye Jones 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 forBest R&B Album for Give the People What They Want.

In 2002, under the name Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, the group released an album Dap Dippin' with Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings for which they received immediate attention and acclaim from enthusiasts, DJs and collectors. With three more albums under their belt, Naturally (2005), 100 Days, 100 Nights (2007) and I Learned the Hard Way (2010) they are seen by many as the spearhead of a revivalist soul and funk movement.

In 2015, during an interview with Billboard about her Grammy nomination, Jones discussed her commitment to the Daptone Label, an independent. She cited artistic freedom and the commitment to the project that is the band.

In 2015, Jones joined the judging panel for The 14th Annual Independent Music Awards and by doing so, helped to assist the careers of upcoming independent artists. She also served as a judge for the 13th annual awards.

Sharon Jones died in 2016, with the band releasing the posthumous final album Soul of a Woman in 2017. Her backing band have since performed together live and worked with other artists.

How inspiring? Am I right? A woman in her 40’s releasing her 1st studio album and finding a wealth of success? It’s the belief in the idea that if you persist, you are sure to succeed. It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; “If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody.”

So today, with knowledge at my fingertips and confidence in my soul, I choose Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings’ “8 Days of Hanukkah” as my, let the lower lights be burning, find the passion that is your calling, never give up, song for a, don’t you quit, give more than you receive, know that once you have aligned yourself on the path of right-mindedness you can not falter, 6th night of Hanukkah, Tuesday.

Let’s go make dreams come true.