She's Gone Country

My whole life I have had the ability to hear and mimic sounds. As I got older, this bled into my singing career. Meaning, I have been able to sing a range of styles. Country, classical, Broadway, pop, jazz and folk. Most people don't really know folk, but if you call it singer/songwriter, people feel better. Any who, this talent used to be a piece of pride I held. Eventually, however, it turned into an identity crisis. I had a vocal instructor once who said to me that if you don't identify exactly what music you write and perform, then  your crowd will get confused and lost and drift away out of confusion. You become the wallpaper because you will not stand out. This disturbed me quite a bit. So I pondered. A lot. I kept going from Country, to Pop, to singer/songwriter, and in the back of my head, I couldn't deny that I love show tunes and stage acting. Sigh.
Recently, I have had the opportunity to perform on the stage with a friend of mine, Brian. We did a few shows in Park City in January and they were so much fun, but I realized something....my voice is just too big to pretend I can only do cafe style singing. We sang songs from the Civil Wars, Damien Rice and The Swell Season and as fun as it was, my voice is just too big for those places. I felt myself dialing down the entire night to try and fit the venue and crowd.
Which brings me to last week. My friend Ashley called with tickets to go see Miranda Lambert. Her husband works for the radio station and occasionally she gets to invite people along with her perks. I don't think she knew how much I loved Miranda until I answered back immediately with strong enthusiasm that YES!!! I wanted to go.
So we went! And it was amazing!!! And watching her show, I felt so inspired :) The show was big, emotional, loud, touching, crazy and fun all in one night. Her songs were so expressive and entertaining and strong and meaningful. I realized that for her demographic, you start singing at fairs and parks and such. Everything starts bigger. I have too much spunk to sit on a cafe stage quietly and play a moving quiet piece. Long story short, I think I have decided to stick with country. At least try my hand at it. If you don't like country, sorry friends, but this girl goes way back in country roots. I grew up listening to Anne Murray, Reba McIntyre, Dolly Parton, Randy Travis, George Strait, Alan Jackson and Johnny Cash. (mainly at my grandma's house cause my grandpa was such a fan). I love country music, culture and feel. So, let's see where it takes me.
Here are some pics from the concert:

It was spectacular. And ps, if you don't know who Miranda Lambert is, If you listen to the following two songs, you will love her. The first, "Gunpowder and Lead" the other "The House that Built Me". You'll be a fan too...just you wait and see ;)