La’Shelle Allen, contralto, began her professional career as a soloist with the Harlem Spiritual Ensemble in New York City. Today, Allen’s career spans more than thirty years, performing in thirty-nine countries in countless opera houses, theaters, and a variety of event venues. Highlights of Allen’s work include appearances at St. Peter’s Basilica, Grand Théâtre de Genève, North Sea Jazz Festival, and Madison Square Garden. Recent engagements include collaborations with Opera Steamboat, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Louisville Orchestra with Jack Harlow, and as a member of the Metropolitan Opera’s GRAMMY Award®-winning cast of The Gershwins®' Porgy and Bess.
Allen works not only in opera but also in jazz, blues, spoken word, Negro spirituals, and roots and soul. Allen currently works as Music Producer, Composer, and Arranger for Sistah LaLa Productions and serves as recording artist and voiceover actress.
Allen’s recently released solo album, Journey To Freedom, showcases original music and arrangements centering the American Negro spiritual. Allen is the creator and founder of Spirituals In Motion, a musical project and outreach program that engages song creation focused on the history and example of Traditional Spirituals. Spirituals In Motion is designed to explore conversations around culture and the contributions of underrepresented voices.
Later this year, Allen will join Houston Grand Opera’s 2025 Production of The Gershwins®' Porgy and Bess as Maria. Allen is also working on her second independent project, “Songs from the Front Porch; an Appalachian Experience.” This project explores the musical influences and storytelling of the Appalachian region.
