Richetta was born in Denver, Colorado, but was raised in Omaha, NE. where she still resides today. Richetta's father, Richard Lewis, who was an accomplished saxophonist, singer and actor, recognized his daughter's natural singing and artistic abilities, and became her mentor and coach. As a young teen Richetta developed a fondness for jazz; which was easy to understand, as this is the music she listened to while growing up. She was a major fan of Dianah Washington, Carmen McCrae, Sarah Vaughn, and Ella Fitzgerald. One could only imagine Richetta's delight when, in her early career, she not only shared the same stage with Sarah Vaughn, and, later, Ella Fitzgerald, but was also able to form friendships with these legendary divas. Richetta's professional career began when she replaced the vocalist with the Cliff Dudley Orchestra. Shortly afterwards, Richetta went on tour with the Preston Love Band, and through her travels, discovered the road was not for her. Although, many years later, she did accept an offer for an extended engagement at Kansas City's Club Lorlie. Other ventures led her to perform with Marlena Shaw in San Francisco. She also had engagements in Washington DC and Hawaii. Richetta has performed at many of Omaha's top night spots, including, but not limited to The Off Beat, Mickey's, Angelo's, The Hilton, Anthony's, Mr. Kelly's, and, The Colony Club..where she met and performed with Nancy Wilson. Richetta was the featured vocalist for the Don Rice production of Jazz 62 at Witherspoon Concert Hall. She later performed with Chuck Pennington as part of the Brownsville Concert Hall Series, and was also the voice behind several musical jingles and commercials. At this time, Richetta has semi-retired, and only accepts limited private engagements. she is now taking time to rediscover her love of art and interior design, and keeps herself busy with many projects |