Meet Our Teaching Artists
Imani Gonzalez
Imani is a professional world/jazz vocalist, artist educator and children’s author. Her voice was most notably featured on the musical soundtrack of the Emmy nominated film JANE GOODALL: MY LIFE with CHIMPANZEES and on many of the National Geographic Television’s Explorer Series soundtracks. She is a 2016 through 2024 fellowship grant recipient of the DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities. Imani is a Kennedy Center National Teaching Artist, Consultant with Focus 5 Consulting Firm, as well as on the rosters with Inspired Child (Dumbarton Arts Education), and Washington Performing Arts (WPA). She has been Artistic Director for the DCPS Teacher Ensemble, Sawubona, for four years. Imani has had the honor of performing, touring, and recording with such renowned artists as WYNTON MARSALIS and the JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA for eight consecutive years. For 34 years, Imani has held the distinction of being the first and only American who toured and recorded with the genuinely traditional Ghanaian ensemble ODADAA. Her children’s books and compact discs entitled DHIMIKI and IYIPO AYÉ have received rave reviews from universities, libraries, teachers, and students. The Washington Post has called Imani “One of the most important vocalists of all times.”