Tenor Chaz’men Williams-Ali attended Central Visual and Performing Arts High School, studying under Dello Thedford and Yvonne Crockett. He joined the Opera Theatre St. Louis Artist-in-Training program where he studied for two years. He studied voice at the University of Iowa School of Music and made his professional  opera debut in 2008 in Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers with Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre. In 2009, he was named the Grand Prize division winner in the National Association of the Teachers of Singing (NATS) competition. He excelled in the music program participating in many operas and oratorios. In 2017, Chaz’men returned to the Glimmerglass Festival family as one of the season’s Young Artists following the 2016 season’s success as Giles Gory and stepping in as Rodolfo in La Boheme. He made his Kennedy Center debut with the Washington National Opera’s Emerging Artist performance of Madama Butterfly as Pinkerton. He returned home to St. Louis after his time in AIT to be a Gaddes Festival Artist with Opera Theatre St. Louis and performed the role of Jazz in Blitzstein’s Regina alongside Susan Graham and James Morris.

Following successful debuts at English National Opera and Dutch National Opera, he enjoyed success in his first season in the ensemble at Theater und Orchester Heidelberg in 2019 – 2020 where he reprised his role as Pinkerton among other performances.

As the world looks forward to returning to live performances, he looks forward to making his debut with the Metropolitan Opera in their production of Die Meistersinger. Chaz’men has also experienced success as a music director, having directed and conducted for companies throughout the Midwest.