I) You were born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. How did your background serve as an inspiration for your music?: I think I was mostly influenced by my family. There was always music playing in our home and so I always had a soundtrack to my daily life. We also had a guitar in the house and I was always drawn to it.

2) What made you decide to start a career in music?: Writing songs was just something I always did. I had no idea I would be able to make it a career so, I studied other things until I knew that it was pointless trying to make a career of anything else but music. It’s what I’m cut out to do.

3)What was your inspiration behind the recording of «Dawn»? «Drawn» was taking all these mixed feelings that had been bottled up inside me and releases them. Every one of those songs is a message to someone. I was struggling with emotions and very confused about situations I kept finding myself in. Drawn was all about that.

4) Who are your musical idols and how were you able to learn from their music and or careers  to form your own style of singing?I would say my earliest were The Police, The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac and The Pretenders. But it wasn’t really about the singing as much as it was about the writing. I wanted to know what they were singing about. I read lyrics constantly. As far as singing goes, it just took a lot of vocal coaching to bring out the «me», I guess.

5) What makes the music of Laura Marie distinct from those of Mainstream Music? I’m not sure how to answer that. I think I’m a healthy mix of an indie and mainstream sound. I don’t really write with the thought of becoming mainstream though, I think, some of my songs would be considered ‘marketable’ in that way. There are too many variables to say much more…the stream changes.

 

6) What was your inspiration behind the recording of «Last Of The Ones»? The inspiration was friendship. I have a close friend who can 1) read my mind and 2) remind me of who I am and want to be. Priceless, really. So, the song is really about how a true friendship can save you in your darkest moments and how we all have this capability of making deep connections with people that require no words….like, mental telepathy.

 

7) Many people have compared Laura Marie to Norah Jones. Many people think of such comparisons when they here «Love You Like Me» which is one of my favorite Laura Marie music. How does Laura Marie see Laura Marie music wise? I’ve heard the comparison a couple of times but I get Natalie Merchant more often. I think both artists are phenomenal and both have been an inspiration to me as a female artist. I love the quality of Norah Jones voice. It’s a quality I don’t think I posses but the «soothing» description is what I think people are thinking of when they make that comparison. I absolutely love the activism in Natalie Merchant’s writing but, up until recently, I didn’t really write from that perspective so, it was difficult to accept that comparison. Though, I totally get what people say about it. There is a similar vocal quality there. Earthy, I think. What I have to say about my music is that it started out very personal and self-centered. I couldn’t see beyond my own life and I think some people really appreciated my sharing it. Now, I’ve opened up a bit more and take more chances with my subject matter and I’m far more spiritual than I ever have been in my writing.

8) You have sung with artists such as Coles Whalen. What have been your experiences singing with other artists? Coles and I have played a show together but we haven’t actually sung together. That would be fun, I think. I love singing with other artists. I love harmonizing and do that quite a bit when I sing with my friend, Chris Taylor. I also have some experience singing in ensembles and like to blend voices. Love it, really. I can only think of one or two times when singing with someone else just didn’t work. It doesn’t work if you want to be heard above all else. You have to want to hear the combination.

9) In addition to Texas, have you done concerts outside of Texas and the USA?  Yes, outside of Texas and no, not outside the USA. I’d love to. We just came back from a trip to Italy and I’d love to tour there or anywhere in the EU for that matter. India would be great too. Oh, there’s always Canada and Mexico. Someone book me a Canadian tour and I’m there yesterday! 🙂

 

10) What advice would you give to people who want to start a career in music? Never stop learning and improving yourself, be courteous, be respectful (of everyone) and, above all else, be honest. Integrity will pay off in more ways than you can imagine.

 

11) Do you have any message for your fans?  Yes, I LOVE YOU! And I truly mean that. If my music has connected with you it’s because we are connected and becoming a fan means that you have cared enough about that connection to reach out and I love that! So many times I’ll write a song and think «where did that come from?». When it connects with someone else it feels very purposeful like I was supposed to write about that not just for myself but for someone else too.

http://my.nowpublic.com/culture/laura-marie-talks-about-her-career-and-new-album