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DC: As far back as I can remember, I
have always loved to sing. I tried to
sing along with and imitate all the
singers that would come on the radio
and to the records I owned. I sang in
grade school choirs and plays and got
my first major part in a school musical
in 8th grade as Maria in the Sound of
Music. In college I sang in musicals, a
swing band, and a female acapella 4-
part harmony group. My last year of
college I joined a blues-rock band that
a friend put together and I really
embraced the raw, passionate, power
of the blues. It started me on a path of
really listening to blues, soul and jazz
music and falling in love with this style.

LL: Have you had any formal music
training, or do you just have a great
ear?

DC: As mentioned, I sang in lots of different musical situations and gained some knowledge of
singing and ear training from this practice. I always felt I was a natural singer and never studied
voice until about 6-7 years into performing professionally with bands. I started to experience
constant hoarseness, loss of range and realized I was injuring my voice. So, I worked with two
different vocal coaches over the next 5 years at different points to learn how to sing in the same
style and put less stress on my voice. I learned more about the mechanics of the voice, breathing
and supporting my sound better and lots of warm up techniques. I also learned how to figure
out what I needed in order to hear myself in a live band situation, so I wasn’t pushing myself. It
was really helpful, and I would recommend this to anyone who wants to sustain their voice for
many years of singing.

LL: Could you tell us about your musical career path please?

DC: After the musical experiences growing up and in college, I struggled to figure out how to
channel the artistic part of me and to find a musical path. I was aware of so many of the societal
issues and injustices going on and had a strong desire to be working with people and communities
to create positive change. I got a job as a social worker in Boston, MA working with children and
families and was really engaged in this work. After a few years I moved to Philadelphia to obtain
my Masters in Social Work (MSW). I wanted to gain a better understanding of the issues I was
seeing and tools to help people create change. My first job after graduate school was at a Rape
Crisis Center in Philadelphia as a child/adolescent counselor and then I became the Director of
the Counseling Program. I felt very connected to the mission of this agency, and it was fulfilling
to support individuals and families dealing with these issues. It was also very intense and
emotionally draining. I worked there a total of seven years and after a few years, I knew I needed
to find something that would be a creative outlet, would be fun and help me express my own
feelings in order to balance this work. I had taken guitar lessons off and on since adolescence
and started studying again. A co-worker’s husband wanted to start a blues band and we formed
a band called “The Blue Root”. This was a more acoustic blues group, and we performed a lot of