Harmonizing jazz and justice, UVA Law grad takes Blues Alley stage

Ella Fitzgerald. Dizzy Gillespie. Charles Mingus. Wynton Marsalis. Tony Bennett.

Those are just some of the musical greats who have appeared at Blues Alley, the venerable Washington, D.C., jazz club in the heart of Georgetown, founded in 1965.

professional photo of Kemi Adegoroye

Adegoroye says her musical journey began with childhood lessons and a formative Aretha Franklin concert at age 12. (Photo by Fede Guendel)

As of Monday, you’ll be able to add Kemi Adegoroye, a 2017 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law, to the list. She will perform two shows at the 125-seat venue, which bills itself as the “oldest continuing jazz supper club” in the country.

Adegoroye has performed at other D.C.-area landmark venues, such as Pearl Street Warehouse and Mr. Henry’s, and made appearances around the country and internationally. Her first single, “The Man Who Stole the Moon,” was a finalist for a 2021 Washington Area Music Association “Wammie” award. Her debut soul EP, “For the Record,” was a finalist for two more Wammies in 2022. She’s even sung the national anthem a few times at Washington Nationals baseball games.

Adegoroye is a musician and producer who can perform jazz standards while also knocking out new compositions of her own. One fan commented on Adegoroye’s website that her style is “nothing short of magical, blending smooth jazz melodies with a silky, rich voice that instantly draws you in.”

But music is neither just a hobby nor her only profession. Adegoroye remains a practicing lawyer, a full-time risk assessment manager with a banking and technology company.

“It’s always been two simultaneous careers,” she said.

Her musical career began early in life. Adegoroye’s parents, Nigerian immigrants and U.S. citizens, started her on piano and voice lessons, enrolled her in theater classes and honed her tastes listening to the radio during morning drives to school. Adegoroye saw Aretha Franklin in concert when she was 12.

She continued singing at Princeton University, where she majored in history and earned a certificate (Princeton’s term for a minor) in theater, performing with the chapel choir internationally and in several shows across campus. 

Adegoroye didn’t want to leave her musical dreams behind after being admitted to UVA Law. She took a gap year after finishing college and spent the time auditioning for Broadway and releasing a CD of Christmas songs.

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When Adegoroye finally arrived in Charlottesville, she threw herself into law school, satisfying what she described as her “nerd side.”

“I love creativity, but there’s a part of me that also loves the logical mindset, the legal mindset,” she said.

Her favorite courses included Contracts with former School of Law Dean Paul G. Mahoney and Torts with professor Barbara Armacost. And of course, she wrote and performed in the Libel Show, the school’s annual student-run variety production.

Even amid her legal studies, Adegoroye couldn’t let her performing side go.

“I was constantly thinking of songs, ideas or projects,” she said. “I’d be in (Civil Procedure class) and my mind would wander off thinking, ‘Oh, this would be a great song idea.’”

Asked if many people at UVA Law knew of her musical ambitions, Adegoroye laughed. “A couple did,” she said, “because it’s all I talked about.”

A year in Paris

Adegoroye spent her third year in law school in Paris, earning a master’s degree through UVA’s exchange program at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris. Then she worked for two years in private practice with the Washington office of Latham & Watkins. As much as she enjoyed the challenge of being at a big law firm, Adegoroye said she soon realized it would be impossible to pursue a musical career while working crushing hours as an associate. She moved to her present job in 2020.

The singer released “The Man Who Stole the Moon” soon after, on Valentine’s Day 2020, and worked through the pandemic to produce her “For the Record” EP. In 2022, she led the soul, jazz and R&B group Terra Firma the Band to release “Live with Terra Firma,” a mix of covers and original songs. She released her song, “In My Corner,” in 2023, accompanied by an early 2000s-inspired music video that won a 2024 Telly Award.

She plans to continue trying to do it all in the music industry as a writer, performer and producer. “I know it sounds crazy,” Adegoroye said, “but I love all aspects of the music business.”

Still, in Adegoroye’s heart, there is something special about getting up on stage. “I love live performances,” she said. “That’s some of the best magic you’ll feel as a musician.”

Media Contact

Mary Wood

Chief Communications Officer University of Virginia School of Law