Los Angeles – Imagine growing up with the musical pedigree of Arielle; singing since age five with Peninsula Girls Chorus, learning piano, trumpet and guitar by the tender age of 10. By that age, most kids’ biggest accomplishment is memorizing the advanced controls on Minecraft. While there is undoubtedly a lot of pressure that comes with dedicating yourself so fully to a craft at such a young age, it came naturally for Arielle.
“I have a strong platform to grow off of because I know this is basically in my blood,” she told Best New Bands.
Even though learning the guitar at 10 sounds young, Arielle had actually wanted to learn the instrument for several years prior. Her parents made her hold out for a few years and focus on her vocals and other instruments.
“The thing that inspired me the most was seeing ‘Queen Live at Wembley’ when I was 6,” she said. “It changed my life. When I saw Brian May, I said to myself, ‘Holy crap, that’s exactly what I want to do.’”
From there Arielle continued to hone her skills in singing and guitar playing, until her father’s passing when she was 13 years old. At that point she directed her focus exclusively to her guitar, and graduated early from high school to attend the Musician’s Institute in Hollywood, CA. Moving to Los Angeles at the age of 16, and then London at 18 served as eye-opening experiences for the young musician.
“When you go somewhere else in the country, you begin to realize how small you really are,” said Arielle. “How much is going on that you or I may not think about. So many lives, so many thoughts, so much music to be heard. LA is fast moving. Sometimes when I get out of here and it’s been a while since I had, I forget how fast-paced it is here. How driven the people are. Very strong cities, both of them have changed me significantly.”
In fact, one of Arielle’s most recent tracks seems to express this sentiment, as its folk-driven country pop sound drives a strong vocal melody with lyrics expressing how the singer “ want[s] my name in the lights.” For the most part, Arielle’s songwriting style straddles the line between a country and pop sound. When she writes, she tries to stay true to the organic feel of folk/country music while turning enough knobs in the studio to get a unique modern sound.
Today, Arielle is part of the songwriting duo The Reverie with Adam Peri, and they work out of a recording studio in Eagle Rock, Los Angeles. The duo custom writes songs for musicians in addition to their work coming up with songs for Arielle. Over the last few years she has released several EPs, and her goal is to finish writing and recording her first full-length release. While she writes for other artists, she is mostly focused on building her own repertoire of songs.
“I think I set my intention to have it be the best and clearest song it can be depending on how I am feeling, and I pour it into the song. It’s normally after the song I realize if it’s for me or not,” said Arielle. “The only time I will purposely work on something for someone else is if they ask for a custom-written song. But otherwise, whatever comes, comes!”
Arielle typically plays a handful of shows each month in the Los Angeles area, and has made several special appearances as a solo artist and worked as a backing musician for Cee Lo Green and Brian May. She describes the highlight of her young career as being her performance at Seattle’s EMP Museum for the “Kiss the Sky” event. She was able to open for a couple of classic rock legends in Heart, Joan Jett, Graham Nash, and Country Joe McDonald while supporting a cause that is near and dear to her heart.
“It was an amazing experience for an amazing cause. I am a major dolphin and whale activist for their freedom, and they were all there for the same reason. Amazing. The crowd was so responsive, and many had tears.”
Arielle has plans for a mini tour and has some interest in an Australian tour. Her goal is to have her debut LP ready for release by the fall.
To learn more about Arielle’s upcoming shows and learn more as she writes and records her full length, visit her Facebook page.
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Best New Bands is pleased to present our third cycle in a series of articles about worthy artists that came to us via our Artist Discovery program with ReverbNation, the website that provides over three million music industry professionals with powerful easy-to-use technology to promote and prosper online. Look for additional artist profiles in the weeks and months ahead!
Matt Matasci
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