Be it with a soothing subtlety or a boisterous bellow, Tonia’s voice has mesmerized audiences, opening for gospel industry powerhouses such as Fred Hammond and  Dorinda Clark-Cole, and capturing the attention of prominent producers, leading her to record background vocals on a song for the “Queen of Hip Hop Soul” Mary J. Blige. Her dulcet tones eventually took her to the national stage of the renowned Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York. Ever willing to take on a challenge, and having an openness to engage in culturally diverse, and what she calls, “unusual collaborations” has catapulted her career. In 2017, The McKnight Foundation recognized Tonia’s divinely conferred genius and granted her their prestigious and coveted Musician’s Fellowship, which allowed her to dip deeper into unfamiliar yet beckoning waters. Fusing her rich gospel background with the folk singing of Larry Long or the world-class trumpeting of Charles Lazarus with The Minnesota Orchestra or with a Flamenco at The Lab Theater defies categorization and is a further testament of her genre-bending talent.