I had the pleasure of interviewing 17 year old rising star, Stevie Jewel today. Stevie sounds grounded, intelligent and focused. I have a feeling you'll be hearing quite a bit of her in the near future! To learn more about Stevie, go to her website or myspace page.Geno:First off, I was curious as to where you got the name Stevie.
Stevie: It's actually from my Dad's name Steven. I got the girl version.
Geno: It does have a nice rocker feel to it like Stevie Nicks! Who are your biggest influences?
Stevie: Christina Aguilera is definitely one of my biggest influences along with Aretha Franklin.
Geno: Now I know you have your new single "Seal The Deal" which I really enjoy. I read that you are working on your new CD. Is there a expected release date?
Stevie: I'm hoping for the very end of August or early September. (The release will be an ep or maxi single format.)
Geno: Now are you writing any of the tracks?
Stevie: I'm actually writing on most of them.
Geno: Great! What do draw from, personal experiences?
Stevie: Definitely, most of my music is personal experience based. Because I think that makes it more relatable for the audience.
Geno: I also read on your site that your parents said that you were born to perform. How long have you been singing?
Stevie: I've been singing for as long as I van remember. But, I've been trained to be a performer since I was about 5.
Geno: I know you talked about your influences are, what are you listening to these days? What's on your iPod?
Stevie: On my iPod I listen to a lot of punk rock, Sum 41, Blink 182, a real wide variety. I also have Renee Olstead (a jazz singer), Josh Groban, a crazy variety!
Geno: Now I know that you are relatively young. You are 16?
Stevie: Actually I just had my Birthday on Thursday. I just turned 17!
Geno: That's great! Now you're a student?
Stevie: I'm actually graduating early, but yes I would be a Senior this year.
Geno: Great. I was going to ask how you were balancing the music career and your school work.
Stevie: It's definitely hard, but I enjoy both of them. I love to learn. I think school is very important for people to maintain an education throughout their lives. Whether that be through a career you want or continuing your education.... But also balancing my career on top of that is definitely hard work.
Geno: Now in your free time, when you aren't performing or going to school, what do you like to do?
Stevie: A lot of my friends are performers, so we spend a lot of time just singing in the car! But I hang out with my friends a lot. I like going to the movies.... I really love to sing so in my spare time, I do that too.
Geno: Speaking of movies, do you have favorite movies or stars?
Stevie: Definitely! I love Kate Hudson and Brittany Snow. I'm really excited for Nikki Blonski, the star of "Hairspray". She just had a huge break and that's really exciting for her. Some of my favorite movies are "John Tucker Must Die", "Mean Girls" and "Legally Blond".
Geno: Now as you're going to be a big star yourself, if you could meet anybody famous who would it be?
Stevie: Definitely Christina Aguilera or Barbra Streisand. (Barbara) has had an amazing career spanning Broadway, Radio and Television and film. It's just phenomenal! I would love to talk to her about her experiences.
Geno: Is there anything else that we haven't touched on that you'd like to get across to people out there?
Stevie: My fans are my biggest support! I love to sing & I hope they love to hear it. Because that's part of the reason why I do it.
Geno: In addition to your website, is there a good way for people to keep track of your career and buy your tracks?
Stevie: My Myspace page is definitely a good way.
Geno: Well Stevie it's been really nice talking with you!
Stevie: Thank you! Nice to talk to you too!
