Pro Soul Vocalist | Songwriter

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: Any and all of my albums, singles I'm especially proud of. I write, co-produce, vocally produce and perform every detail of a song, so when it's actually release from my vice grip of perfectionism, it's a great source of pride!

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I am currently working on my manifestation/affirmations album! I've been studying sound healing and diving into the world of binaural frequencies and am super excited to incorporate that into my r&b soul style music.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I'm a digital girl! While I love classic analog for certain style classic records and can agree that it's untouched in creating those old school feels, I LOVE the limitlessness that digital can provide. I'm a millennial, so I wasn't really birthed in the analog times to really inner stand the sound consistently across genres. I'm adaptable and I like my mixers and equipment to be as well.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: Crystal clear communication, top professionalism, organized files/folders, and the absolute best vocals I can provide! I've worked hard to build my brand from scratch and these factors mean a lot to me.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I get to create and sing, from home. When I want, HOW I want, and in the ways I know I sound the absolute best. No 9-5. No corporate overlord sucking out my life energy. Just me and the gift God gave me. I am my own instrument and currency. What could be better than that?!

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: I'm often asked if I can do live recordings or in person performances of the songs or bcvs, and my answer is yes! I'm located in Austin TX but I'm always willing to travel if budget allows!

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That I'm just a vocal robot and can spit out any vocal any time. I need vocal rest, time to take a break away from the record so I can come back and hear it with refreshed ears. I record best during the day for really highs, and late nights for really low vocals. I also still perform live 2-3x per week which means I have to schedule recording sessions accordingly to be at my best!

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: 1. Full description of project, including potential use cases, vision, and similar references. 2. Time frame 3. How many stacks, doubles, voice parts 4. How much creative freedom I have. This is the biggest because if the client is too rigid and won't allow for me to use my crafted abilities, it won't have the same outcome. 5. Budget

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Be specifically looking for my voice type. I cannot remove the soul from my voice, it's engrained. So if you want a house or pop vocal from me, just KNOW it will be a soulful version of that.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: My laptop, keyboard, headphones, microphone and interface!

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I've been singing since I was four years old. My mother was (and still is!) a powerhouse gospel singer and the minister of music for my church, and my father was the organist/pianist. I've been writing songs my whole life as my self expression. I went to school and got my BA in Music Management from Manhattanville College. I also have certificates from Berklee for songwriting and vocal production. Since college, I've been performing all over the US with my original music and working in commercial wedding bands as my primary career income. So its safe to say almost 30 years of music experience, and over 12 years professionally.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Smoky, sultry, soulful, sexy, powerful, powerhouse (when requested), jazzy....I could keep going all day lol

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: Masego or Doechii, equal parts because of their musical creativity and unapologetic uniqueness.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: When creating choir-like vocal stacks, make sure to record in different parts of the booth in different style voices to emulate the positions and characters of many voices at once!

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: My passion is r&b, jazz and classic soul so those are usually the jobs I accept and look for. I'm also booked frequently for gospel, funk and even reggae!

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Harmonies, harmonies, HARMONAYYYS!! I grew up in church with a gospel SANGING family, leading the church choirs. I love to harmonize and to create vocal production that fills up the space. I actually prefer this to singing lead or performing live.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: My name is Soulstress for a reason ;) If you are looking for sultry, smoky, sensual, soulful female vocals, I am the perfect fit.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Typically I'll start by listening to popular songs in the genre or style/vibe 'd like to embody and soak it in. Then I'll listen to the song I'm working on and record a few raw idea and adlib tracks for a reference. Then I'll take a break, clean my ears and come back to fine tune the record from there.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I converted my guest bedroom into a full professional home studio which consists of iMac, two screen monitors, Scarlet Interface, Aston Spirit Condenser Microphone, KRK Rokit 5, Protools, Logic, fully sound proof booth, 2 midi Yamaha keyboards, and Yamaha MG10XU 10-Channel Mixer.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: My vocal inspiration comes from many different bad ass female singers, namely Lauryn Hill, Anita Baker, Doechii, Aretha Franklin, Jazmine Sullivan, and Erica Campbell. In fact, when warming up vocally before a live performance, I listen to these women to get me ready for a show. For musicians, I love Cory Henry, Masego, Adam Blackstone, Robert Glasper!

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Mostly demo or background vocal work for clients looking for soulful female vocals. Clients also reach out for regular features and custom songwriting for tracks they've already started and need help with catchy hooks or intriguing lyrics and cadence!