Dee is among the premier vocalists/songwriters and one of Chicago's most gifted and respected artists. Her performances span virtually every music genre related to the African diaspora: gospel, blues, neo-soul, R&B, and world music.  Her true heart belongs to jazz, the idiom that encompasses all her influences.

She gravitated toward jazz at an early age naming several ladies of jazz among her major influences. Her collaboration with Chicago saxophonist “Light” Henry Huff encouraged her to take risks and cross boundaries, setting her on the path to becoming an accomplished voice improviser. Her 2007 "Sirens of Song" tribute to Nina and Dinah (commissioned by the Jazz Institute of Chicago), at Chicago's Pritzker Pavilion, introduced her to a larger audience resulting in frequent tours to Europe, Africa and Asia.  She has long and fruitful associations with Chicago's jazz elite and leads her own groups: Dee Alexander Quartet, Evolution Ensemble and co-leads the Alexander/McLean Project.

Her accolades include "Chicagoan of the Year" (Chicago Tribune, 2008); "Jazz Entertainer of the Year" (Chicago Music Awards); her 2009 album Wild Is The Wind received five stars (highest honor) from Downbeat Magazine, which placed it among the Top Ten recordings of the new millennium. She was the recipient of the 2012 3Arts Award for Jazz. Currently, she’s a member of the AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians), Chicago's internationally known musicians' collective and has performed in other large-scale works on Chicago stages and television and also a radio host of the syndicated WFMT Jazz Network!