Biography...
As the daughter of the legendary
Louis Prima and singer
Gia Maione Prima,
Lena Prima is blessed with a unique musical heritage.
Louis Prima (a New Orleans native) has
been hailed in the annals of 20th century American music as an
innovative genius
and Lena's mother,
Gia Maione
(a New Jersey native and Louis' fifth and last wife) is a classically trained singer
who married Louis in 1963 and performed with him throughout the 60's
and 70's until his passing in 1978.
(for more information about
Born in Las Vegas, Lena and her younger brother, Louis Jr. were also raised in and around
New Orleans, Louis' home town.
The Prima family had homes with golf courses in both
cities and moved back and forth during
Lena's formative years.
She grew up singing and dancing on stage with her parents, and touring with them every summer when school was out.
Lena continued her training in school musical
groups and stage productions. She began high school at Covington High
in Louisiana and graduated from
Clark High School in
Las Vegas where she studied music under Marcia Neel, winner of
and
then attended UNLV, studying art, music and dance.
For ten years Lena worked a regular job during the day and sang in rock
& roll clubs at night while writing and recording original music,
including an album with
platinum producer/engineer
Geoff Workman (The Cars, Journey, Queen, Sammy Hagar, etc.).
In 1991, she made singing a full-time career and began touring the
casino/resort circuit with various shows and groups such as
The Checkmates and
The Spiral Staircase
(known for their smash
hit
"I Love You More Today Than Yesterday").
In 1999, she created her multi-media show
"Louis Prima,
That's My Dad!".
Since her debut performance on
Father's Day, 2000 in Las Vegas,Lena has headlined
to sold-out audiences and has been received with standing ovations
around the country at festivals, theaters, performing arts centers,
casinos and corporate events, including a two year run at the Sahara
Hotel on the
Las Vegas Strip where her famous father performed in the
early 1950's.
She has received several awards including
"Keeping Tradition Alive In Las Vegas Award" presented to her by Governor Lorraine Hunt;
and the
distinguished
American Italian Cultural Roundtable of
New York
honored Lena for
"...continuing her father's legacy and representing women in the
field of jazz".
She has also been credited with bringing the
Sahara
Hotel the "Best Of Las VegasAward"
from the Las Vegas Review Journal.
Lena's original songs including
"Silly In The Middle"
are available on
iTunes
and
Amazon.com
