Kansas City’s Pitch Magazine’s Critics’ Choice named her Best Jazz Singer, saying, “Molly Hammer doesn’t just own a song — she owns the room where she sings. With a sparkling brashness, Hammer infuses a full range of jazz standards with her distinct style. Hammer’s singing — whether treating you to playful sultriness on ‘Frim Fram Sauce,’ inspired longing on ‘Gee Baby, Ain’t I Good to You’ or the rapid-fire lyrics of ‘Joy Spring’ — has matured into a sound that pulls evenly from jazz history and her own musical-theatre background, which, of course, helps drive her dynamic stage presence.” Molly has been performing in the Kansas City area since 2005. With an eclectic vocal background, she has found her home in the world of jazz and blues, drawing inspiration from the likes of Peggy Lee, Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughn, and many others. She has had the privilege of performing with some of the finest jazz musicians in the Kansas City area, and on “Out Of This World,” Molly is backed by a terrific ensemble: arranger/producer Joe Cartwright on piano, Todd Strait on drums, Steve Rigazzi on bass, Brad Gregory on saxophone, and Jessalyn Kincaid and Molly Denninghoff on backing vocals. She has also had the honor of singing the National Anthem for both The Kansas City Royals and The Kansas City Chiefs. In a special dedication, Molly states, “I’d like to dedicate this recording to the memory of my beloved sister Ann. She was my greatest cheerleader, and I know wherever she is, she’s over the moon with pride.” In an interview with Molly in The Kansas City Pitch magazine, Natalie Gallagher noted that “Hammer speaks with an actor’s diction, clear-voiced and enunciating every syllable. She studied theater and worked as an actress for years before making the switch to a career in jazz. Acting, she says, lost its charm. “ ‘I grew weary of being told exactly what to say and where to say it,” she says. “‘Take two steps down stage, look to the right and sing these notes exactly.’ I felt like I was a bird in a cage, and I wanted to step out and make my own choices.” “In 2012, Hammer left the theater to study jazz under legendary pianist Joe Cartwright. In the years since, she has established herself as one of Kansas City’s most recognizable and original voices. “ ‘ Always, in the back of my mind, I secretly wanted to be a jazz singer,” she says. “But you can’t just wake up one morning and call yourself that. You have to start slow and learn as much as you can, and that’s what I did, and I discovered that it’s what I’m meant to do. As a jazz singer, I felt like I had more creative freedom over my material. I could put my own setlist together and pick out tunes that I wanted to play. I wasn’t being told exactly where to stand.” “For the most part, though, Hammer is still taking someone else’s material and delivering it to an audience that knows what to expect before the first chord is through. That doesn’t bother her. Hammer has always loved the standards and the strong women — Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Peggy Lee, Dinah Washington — who made them classics. “ ‘ To connect with your audience, it doesn’t matter if you’re singing a song that’s 60 years old,” Hammer says. “If they’re feeling you, then they’re with you. You tell the story because the stories are timeless, and in the best-case scenario, you’re telling the story from your own specific viewpoint — and that’s always going to be interesting.’ ”