Fanny's Debuts a Dynamic Live Music Series, HELLO, GORGEOUS, on June 18

An intriguing new monthly music series at Fanny’s, the restaurant and café at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, will recapture the shimmering, rollicking charms of a classical Hollywood supper club. Hello, Gorgeous will marry eclectic entertainers, pristine sound, dramatic lighting, and an exquisite prix fixe menu into a singularly evocative experience.
Hello, Gorgeous debuts on Saturday, June 18 with public defender-turned-potent, soulful singer Danielle Ponder, fresh off an electrifying performance on Late Night with Seth Meyers; taste-shaping Los Angeles DJ/curator Jason Bentley; and an inspired menu from Chef Raphael Francois of West Hollywood’s renowned Tesse.

A fascinating anomaly in the music business, Danielle Ponder took a huge leap of faith in 2018 by leaving her role as a public defender in her hometown of Rochester, New York to focus entirely on a singing career. Her sound – a nuanced blend of pop, R&B, blues, rock, and moody trip-hop – connects through a goosebump-inducing voice that’s drawn comparisons to Aretha Franklin, Macy Gray, and Tina Turner.

Ponder’s gamble began to pay off almost immediately, with NPR selecting her as one of its best “Tiny Desk” concert performers in 2020. This year alone she made a buzz-building appearance at SXSW in March; delivered a powerhouse national TV bow on Late Night with Seth Meyers in May; and has a much-anticipated debut album, Some of Us Are Brave, due in August.

Repeated trips to Los Angeles have included recording her debut with Mercury Prize-winning producer Gianluca Buccellati and Jordan Waré (Diplo, Chance the Rapper etc.) Ponder’s grown so fond of L.A. that she’s begun to think about relocating.

“What I’ve learned about L.A. is that there’s different tribes – there’s tribes for everyone here,” she enthused. “You can definitely do the Hollywood bougie experience if you want to, but you can also find the Black artists’ community, you can find the queer community here, you can find the musician community here.”

When in L.A., self-confessed foodie Ponder loves to visit Bavel restaurant downtown with her co-writer/keyboardist Avis Reese. She also enjoys simply cruising PCH between Santa Monica and Malibu. “We just did that Sunday,” she recalled. “And it was so beautiful. That’s like a cheap, relaxing thing you can do. And it just makes me so appreciative that the landscape here is so diverse.”

Ponder’s Hello, Gorgeous performance and an opening set at Hollywood Bowl’s JUNETEENTH: A Global Celebration of Freedom concert the following day will be thought-provoking appetizers for Some of Us Are Brave, which has been three years in the making.

“There’s a variety of things you can get from the album,” she concluded. “Mostly, I want people to feel like I’m speaking to the human experience and I’m creating a soundtrack for things that we all go through. And I really hope, if anything, people feel less alone.”

Brought to life by renowned restaurateurs Bill Chait and Carl Schuster, Fanny’s restaurant and cafe is named for the groundbreaking movie, vaudeville, theater, and radio legend Fanny Brice. 

Brice was portrayed by Barbra Streisand in an Oscar-winning role in 1968 biographical movie  Funny Girl in which her classic line, delivered to her own reflection, is “Hello, gorgeous” – words that Streisand wittily revisited upon collecting her Best Actress Oscar for the film. This provided both the inspiration and name for the supper club series.

Cue the music: Few have impacted Angelenos’ listening tastes so deeply or for so long as Jason Bentley, who both DJs and curates Hello, Gorgeous. As host of KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic for 11 years and the station’s Music Director for over a decade, he displayed a keen ear for music discovery which continues with his weekly Metropolis KCRW program.

The chef behind the Hello, Gorgeous prix fixe menu, Raphael Francois, made his name at top Michelin-star rated restaurants across Europe before becoming executive chef at NYC’s Le Cirque. Raised in France and Belgium, he partnered with Chait in opening the sleek, French-inspired Tesse on Sunset Boulevard in 2018.

Hello, Gorgeous debuts with two seatings on Saturday, June 18, 2022.

• 6 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
• 8:30 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Reservations are required (no walk-ins) and available in three tiers.