| Birth Date: | 1963 3, df=y |
| Birth Place: | Toxteth, Liverpool, Lancashire, England |
| Instruments: | Piano, guitar |
Tommy Blaize (born 5 March 1963) is a British vocalist, composer, pianist, and guitarist. He is best known as a vocalist on BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing.[1] [2]
Blaise was born in Toxteth, Liverpool, to a father who served in the Royal Navy. He was aged nine when he and his two younger brothers were spotted performing in the street by talent scout Hilda Fallon and subsequently performed their first professional gig as The Blaize Brothers.[3]
Blaize has worked with some of the world's most renowned artists, including Stevie Wonder, Queen, The Beach Boys, Diana Ross, Amy Winehouse, Phil Collins, Robbie Williams, and Joe Cocker.
In October 2017, it was announced that Blaize would release his debut album, Life & Soul, featuring covers of classic soul tracks, on 1 December.[4] [5] The album reached the top 40 of the UK Albums Chart.[6]
On 23 December 2019, Blaize appeared in the season premiere of BBC television series The Goes Wrong Show, "The Spirit of Christmas", as himself.[7]
In May 2022, Blaize and his mother Maureen were featured in the BBC series DNA Family Secrets, presented by Stacey Dooley, where it was revealed that his grandfather had been an American GI named Augusta Walls who was originally a farmer, born in 1914, from Fayette County, Tennessee, who died in 1978. Maureen was his only child, although he never knew. One of Maureen's cousins, Joe Nathan Walls, was a saxophonist with the blues musician Howlin' Wolf.[8]
In March 2024, Blaize was a guest on BBC Radio 4's Saturday Live.[9]