New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Jackie never had any intentions of becoming a professional singer. Though as a child born of a mixed Brazilian and German heritage who was encouraged by her parents to pursue music - including being classically trained on piano as early as age 3 - she never intended to become a singer. She did want to find a way into the music industry, but mostly because she wanted an outlet for so many of the stories she has collected over the years.
She remembers fondly all the places around the world she would travel with her family as a child, and out of those travels she developed an early sense of curiosity - often finding herself asking people to share their stories. She became a collector of stories, so to speak, and found various outlets to share those stories - whether through writing or acting. Eventually she chose to pursue a degree in Entertainment Law at Northeastern University, which in turn led to an internship with the Berman Brothers and their projects associated with Warner
Music Group. But even then she had no dreams of becoming a professional singer. Sure, she loved music, but she'd never performed for anyone or recorded anything professionally in a studio.
But it was in a studio that her true talent was discovered. It happened as so many amazing stories do: unexpectedly. Toward the end of her time with WMG, she asked if she could use the studio to create something for her father as a present for his birthday. As she was creating her present in the studio, a record executive heard her singing and was impressed. He told her she should pursue singing professionally, and soon she was learning how to put together a record in a professional music studio.
"I fell in love with making music through that whole process," she said. "And since then I've found that I have a lot of ideas that I need to get out."
Toward that end, Jackie is ready to release her very first single. It's a song called "Not Around" that features R&B artists Chris Massey. When she first wrote the lyrics, they touched on relationships in very broad strokes - the intention being that anyone could listen to it and relate to it with any relationship in their life. But when Massey came along and the two began to craft the single together, it began to form into more of a song about lost love.
"Everyone has someone who they can relate to - or a group of people they can relate to - that they feel like they would be better without," she said. "That's what this song is about."
Jackie said she first was introduced to Massey when the two of them were working on separate projects in studios right next to each other. Massey is better known for his work as an actor - having performed on television shows such as "Zoey 101." But when Jackie heard his deep, sultry voice, she knew immediately it was something that would match perfectly with her own deep, soulful sound.
Jackie went on to say that the approach she takes with her music is one that she hopes differs from other artists. She embraces Brazilian musical influences, while playing to her vocal strengths and infusing a variety of sounds. But she bucks against labels that want to paint her into a corner and try to force her to create songs that are mainstream and marketable.
"I'm not going to be a pop star or do any crazy dances or any high-pitched songs," she said. "My voice doesn't do that. I'm also a huge fan of authentic beats, especially if they are East Coast based. A lot of the rhythms I work with come from New York-based artists. That's usually where my starting point is, and I work from there to get some general ideas. I love mixing genres and more than anything that's what I'm going to try to incorporate into all my songs."
