Wilson died on Wednesday at her home in Jackson, Mississippi, according to her manager, Robert Torre.
In a statement, Torre said the acclaimed musician passed away peacefully in the presence of family members, close friends and her manager.
No cause of death was disclosed.
Her family and friends have also appealed for privacy as they mourn the veteran performer, whose career helped shape modern jazz for more than three decades.
Known for her deep and distinctive contralto voice, Wilson established herself as a singer, songwriter and producer, earning widespread recognition for blending jazz with elements of blues, R&B, folk and other musical traditions.
She won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance in 1997 for her album New Moon Daughter.
More than a decade later, she claimed another Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album after Loverly won the category in 2009.
Wilson’s influence extended beyond her solo recordings. She featured prominently in Blood on the Fields, a 1997 oratorio composed by renowned jazz musician Wynton Marsalis. The work went on to become the first jazz composition to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
Throughout her career, she also worked with prominent musicians, including saxophonists Steve Coleman and Greg Osby, as well as hip-hop group The Roots.
Tributes have since poured in from fellow musicians and
admirers.
Grammy-winning musician Jon Batiste described Wilson as an artist who had made a lasting impression on his own musical journey.
He praised her distinctive voice and her ability to bring together folkloric, R&B and diasporic influences with experimental and popular sounds.
Batiste concluded his tribute simply: “She sounded like the South.”
