SoundClick artist: Girl Friday - Girl Friday is a Houston based singer/ songwriter. Combining both traditional and contemporary acous

Girl Friday is a Houston based singer/ songwriter. Combining both traditional and contemporary acoustic sounds, her music is lyric driven, harmony infused, and designed to draw the listener into the story and the emotion. In true singer/songwriter fashion, all songs are crafted to be performed either solo-acoustically or with a full band, making them versatile enough for a relaxing coffee house vibe or an energy-filled festival stage.

Her first EP, "Light of the Moon," was produced by Dan Workman, President and Owner of Sugar Hill Studios in Houston and member of the governing board of The Recording Academy. Her second EP, "Songbird" was co-produced and engineered by Brian Baker of Sound Arts Studios in Houston and was released on July 19, 2011.

Girl Friday is a member of both The Recording Academy and ASCAP and has played at notable acoustic venues including NYC's landmark Bitter End, Dallas' House of Blues, Momo's on Austin's world famous 6th Street, The Woodlands' popular Dosey Doe Coffee House, and Houston's nationally recognized McGonigel's Mucky Duck.

As an advocate of services designed to improve the lives of children, Girl Friday is also a musician volunteer in the Houston community with Love Street Light Circus, a non-profit musicians on call program that brings live music to the bedsides of pediatric cancer, renal, and orthopedic patients. She also supports The Y's Partners of Youth Program donating performances and portions of her EP sales to raise money to scholarship children into programs that promote a healthy spirit, mind, and body. Forever in My Heart, a track from her Light of the Moon EP, was used as background music for a JDRF fundraiser video.

Girl Friday encourages everyone to consider donating a little of their time, talent, or treasure to schools, hospitals, or programs in their communities that assist children who are in need of healing, love, and assistance. No deed is too small. Every child counts.

Why this name?

The name may have chosen me. Ha! :-) I was the only female playing at this local venue on a regular basis....on Fridays. Every time I walked in with my guitar, I heard a shout out, "Hey! Girl Friday! How's it going?" The name sort of stuck, and I enjoy its playful super powers. I also liked the play on Defoes' Man Friday. With my DIY tendencies in operating my Indie Music adventure, it's rather apropos. :-)

Do you play live?

I do! And I LOVE it! Playing live is where I think I really shine. I feel like my forte is connecting with an audience. It's about so much more than the music for me. It's about the people and the many topics we intersect on. As diverse and unique as we all are, there are fundamental things that bond human beings together. I feel those connections with an audience when I play live. I don't think in terms of them being "people who came to listen" to me. I think of "people who came to share" with me. I feed on this. It's like air in my lungs.

I have had numerous special moments from someone sharing with me that my music helped them through radiation treatments to someone telling my a song I'd sung that night helped them to express the loss of a young spouse. I've been so fortunate to know that my music gives peoples' emotions, heartaches, joys, and sometimes even silliness a soft and safe place to land. I feel privileged that people are comfortable enough with me to open up and express themselves. This is what art is for...to make us feel.

How, do you think, does the internet (or mp3) change the music industry?

I think it is more challenging for an artist to monetize studio recordings. With websites that have streaming music and the ease of even using our phones as MP3 players, there isn't a great deal of impetus to pay for something we can listen to for free. Intellectual property becomes a "free-for-all." I think the internet makes it more important than ever for an artist to get out there and perform live to develop relationships with listeners...the human element...something an electronic device cannot impart. And a lot of artists have to have day jobs to pay for their art. Recording is a love project. An Indie artist rarely recoups the funds spent making the music. And yet, we still do it! Go figure! :-)

Would you sign a record contract with a major label?

I would definitely explore it!! The advantage is having all that support and funding behind your projects so you can produce things in the studio that you might otherwise not have been able to afford. However, there is a price to pay. An artist and her/his music becomes a product...a commodity... and certain rights are lost. As is the case in everything in life, there are pros and cons. It all has to be weighed on an individual basis.

Your influences?

This question is incredibly difficult to answer as my musical tastes are so eclectic and diverse. Everything that's come into my ears has somehow shaped my art. I have to say that the singer/songwriters are the ones who shape my writing the most. I love to hear a message or a story of some sort. Lyrics are very important to me. Those who write their own music and then sing it are very invested in the message, and I feel it comes across in the delivery. These are the same people who can sit with one instrument and deliver their song as poignantly as they could with a full band. I find it powerful to hear an artist deliver solo/ acoustically...so exposed and real. It gives me chills. Iconic folk musicians like Peter, Paul, and Mary, Simon and Garfunkel, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Carly Simon, Dan Fogelberg and the likes are tops on my list. Today, I like Jason Mraz, Bryan Fenkart, Missy Higgins, Ari Hest, Sara Bareilles, Adele, Matt Nathansan, Gavin DeGraw, Joshua Radin, and all those peeps whom you can hear on Sirius XM's coffee house station. I listen to everything: Classical, Jazz, Pop, Folk, Electronica, Rock, etc...I LOVE groups like Muse and I think Imogen Heap is an absolutle genius. There are oodles and skads more people I'm not listing, because there isn't enough room. I listen to A LOT of music. But, when I write, I like to follow the lead of all those singer/songwriters who played Greenwich Village in the 60's. Music with a message and a heart.

Favorite spot?

I am a definite fan of the energy of New York and the spirit of their embracing all things artistic. As a hopeless romantic, I love London, Paris, and any city in Italy. California is becoming my newest love with its breathtaking geography and its cool attitude toward original art.

Equipment used:

My SWEET 16 Series, 14 Fret Cutaway custom Martin acoustic electric guitar, Yamaha keyboard, ROLAND FP electric piano, bargain basement Fender Stratocaster electric guitar (for the occasional need to jam), cool, carved Djembe drum (when pounding something inanimate becomes a therapeutic necessity), Boss Loop Station for KT Tunstall moments, DigiTech Vocalist 4 for live performances needing a little harmony, my Tascam Portastudio5, and my Tascam 2488. I hope to conquer Pro Tools one day. One can dream. ha!

Anything else...?

Yeah! Hop over to my website and listen to my tunes! Read my blogs! Follow me on Twitter and Facebook! View my pictures! Watch my videos! Write to me! :-)
www.girl-friday-music.com

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Photos