By Cali Bagby

May Palmer is the type of woman who says “Hey little mama, what’s shakin’?” when she answers the phone.

She is known for breaking into songs like  Aretha Franklin’s “Respect,” in mid-conversation.

She’s the type of performer, who isn’t afraid to promote her talents.

“I’m pretty confident they’ll love me,” said Palmer with a chuckle. “You have to have a certain amount of confident to do this.”

You can hear her powerhouse voice and repertoire of R&B, jazz, Motown and original tracks at the Lopez Center for Community and the Arts, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m.

“I’m so excited to be debuting for the good people of Lopez,” said Palmer, also known as The Queen of Ivory Soul. “I’ve heard glorious things about the island.”

And most of those compliments were coming from Triana Elan, writer of the Weekly’s horoscope, who heard about Palmer through mutual friends.

“When I saw the clip of her on her website, I thought, ‘I have to meet this person,’” said Elen, who immediately contacted Palmer.

The two met up for a cup of coffee at Starbucks near Seattle.

“Right in the middle of the conversation she burst into a song,” said Palmer. “And I was blown away by her voice.”

Elan wanted to see Palmer in action and soon attended a performance.

“I knew that she had a gift, a way of embodying something special when she sings that embraces her audience, that is authentic and powerful,” said Elan. “I could hear elements of Tina Turner and Ella Fitzgerald…that’s when I knew Lopez would love her. Lopez was my home for many years, and I wanted to bring a gift to ‘my island.’”

Elan began to organize a concert on Lopez with the help of the Center.

“May’s talent is rare,” said Elan. “Not only does she have a well trained voice… there is just something that emanates from her when she sings that is able to touch everyone and lift them. I enjoy the sheer force of May’s voice, the range, the way she controls it and uses it as an instrument of not only power, but love and inspiration when she sings.”

Palmer started performing in her native Rhode Island at age nine with a three octave range voice. Palmer has performed in Harlem’s Apollo Theater in New York City and gone on tour to Dubai, Thailand and Japan.

She is known for bringing audiences to their feet clapping, dancing, hugging, whooping and laughing.

“I had my own show in Las Vegas for 15 to 20 years,” said Palmer. “But I burned out on casino culture, I wanted to lay down roots and live a life of growth.”

Palmer, who has lived in the Washington for 14 years, is known in Seattle for singing the National Anthem at the Seahawks game and her appearance on KING 5’s Evening Magazine.

“I do my thing and have fun with it,” said Palmer. “With the economy and  all these wars and so many events going on,  people want to get back to that good happy feeling that has been elusive for so long and the power of the ivory soul gives people a way to feel good.”

Ticket holders will also be entered in a raffled for a Queen of Ivory Soul CD and a bottle of Ivory Mama Syrah, named after Palmer.

For more info, go to www.maypalmer.com or www.lopezcommunitycenter.com.