I have been singing all my life and always had the dream that maybe someday, I would be able to build on that dream and do things on a more level playing field.
I guess I made some progress; I recently released an album entitled, "Finally JNote," and also did my first international tour in Russia. But there is so much more to be done. Everything has been pretty copacetic up until this point where I have hit a wall and am seeking help.
I have a few projects coming up which include recording, professional videography, musical touring, song promotions and more and I am in need of some financial help to fund these projects and to keep this music thing going strong.
I think I have come to a point where I know that I have what it takes to reach the next plateau, but the one thing I am lacking is the necessary finances. And so today, I am asking for your help. Whatever you can and are willing to give, please contribute. Even if it is only $1, it is $1 more than I had to be able to meet my goals for these projects to be successful. But $5, $10 or $20, even better. I know we do not know each other except through the songs you might hear of mine or the blogposts you might read that I share but, still I ask you out of the kindness of your heart to go in your pockets and to help towards these goals. Here is the link to donate: https://www.gofundme.com/jnotemusic Hoping this finds you with the most humble spirit. Thank you in advance for all your help and God bless!
I remember when I was just
this little girl turning on the radio and singing along to whatever was
playing. I can tell you in truth that I had a million favorites back then and
still do.
Now, I don’t only listen along
and sing, but I cover many songs as well. I have about 200 or more songs in my repertory
that spans over many different genres and perform many of them when I am blessed with the opportunity to. I guess you can say, I have a very eclectic musical
taste. I can thank my mother for that who had me listening to John Denver,
Donna Summer, Nana Mouskouri, Placido Domingo and Tabou Combo. She would sing them too while cooking and I think the seed for it landed in the patch of soil where I was planted.
My dad sang and would always make sure to flex his tenor voice at church and I would be impressed hearing him sing with force, the classical hymns that the musicians would play on the cool pipe organ that was at our church. My older sister liked to sing and dabbled in rapping. She was so cool, she would put on music and have little dance parties with us while growing up and it always felt so wonderful and fun. Love for music was born and still resides here but I think way more proportioned than I would have ever imagined.
This week, a singer who my
older sister used to listen to a lot when I was growing up that I fell in love
with listening to known as the songstress, Anita Baker, celebrated her
birthday.
I was excited last night to be
able to do a little tribute to her, covering a song that never seems to get old
in my heart, though I am getting grayer and more frail as the days go by. The song was “Sweet
Love.”
I love the lyrics. I love the
melody. I loved how she sang it with so much passion and soul. And so, on my
way back from a recording session I had in West Haven, CT, I stopped by The
Living Room II where Malika Mo and her band were hosting a wonderful night of
music and she opened up the stage and allowed me to do a song and there, I got
to vocalize and share my interpretation of that cool tune.
In an effort to step more
boldly into the new year with my radio show, I decided to try doing my first
interview and I hope you will all ride the radio airwave with me this Sunday,
January 22, 2017 as I bring to you the non-stop music flow of jazz on Jazz on the
Jnote with my special guest, composer and pianist Yoichi Uzeki.
Join us as we discuss his
life, the art of jazz, and the Japanese
music scene and also, hear exclusive piano splices from this master at the
piano himself. The show will air from 7PM to 8PM EST and you can access it by either
going the theenglishconnectionmedia.com or by logging on to MixLR and using the
following link:http://mixlr.com/the-english-connection-media/
I
am so looking forward to this Sunday and cannot wait for you to hear the great
show that is in store for your ears.
And remember the
truth that we become a little better every day as we go through remarkable
changes based on our experiences and that we have a harvest of kingdom fruit
awaiting us which we are perfectly suitable to dwell in.
“Storms make trees take deeper roots”
– Sharon Lechter
A tidal wave of
change takes place based on the vibration of thoughts we have about our own
selves. While other people’s negative thoughts can become contagious, make sure
to make the big, bold decisions to stay firmly rooted in believing in yourself.
“Depression is
destructive
while
self-confidence and faith are constructive.”
–
Sharon Lechter
When your faith
is spilling over, there is nothing that can knock you out of the soil. You
still stand tall and face the brightness of God’s unmatchable sun. Sparks of
possibility seem to never leave us because we are driven by the flames of
achievement of being blessed by another day.
Only God knows
what the next leg of the journey will bring but while we are headed there,
travel along your path with complete confidence that you have everything it
takes to move forward to what is ahead.
I invite you to check out a flashback of a performance I was so blessed to be a part of at Jacob Javitz Convention Center with the Medgar Evers Jazz Ensemble at the graduation ceremony for the 2013 college graduating class. I was experiencing a bunch of anxieties that day having lost my aunt to cancer the day before who left behind five kids under 18 years old. I was so sad about the situation because we were really close and I couldn't belive my little cousins were left without their mother and my uncle had to do whatever he could to handle it.
After singing before the crowd of 5500 people, I went home, cut all my hair off and started a whole different way of thinking about my life. Change I guess is a real thing when death plays a part. At a funeral about a week back, for a beautiful family who lost their hero, their father, I was asked to sing Sam Cook's "A Change is Gonna Come." A few days later, I lost a dear friend and his family's and friend's lives were changed forever. The whole point is to never lose faith.
The song I sang at the graduation, which is also a point of change from experiencing education to experiencing the field and having to deal with maybe not landing the job we want with so much competition for the same work, was "I Am Changing" originally performed by Dreamgirl Jennifer Holiday and it can be found on youtube at: https://youtu.be/lIyQEJgnWuE
So,
my kids are doing Annie for their winter musical and I am here listening
to the soundtrack, and though my favorite song from the play is
"Tomorrow," another song has grown on me a lot because of the
truthful words; "You Are Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile."
If
you have yet to hear it, you should definitely consider listening to the soundtrack
or seeing the movie. I think I will always love seeing Aileen Quinn, Carol
Burnett and Bernadette Peters playing their roles in this film. My family sat
down to watch it together on Thanksgiving Day and it was something. Brought
back so many memories. If you have seen it, you know what I am talking about.
If you haven’t you should. The Special Anniversary Edition of Annie is
available on Amazon.com. Check it out here: Annie (Special Anniversary Edition)
I
hope that today brings to you many, many reasons to smile because it is so
worth it. Have a great day! Disclosure: I am an amazon Associate and if you click on the item indicated and purchase it, I will receive an incentive based on product purchase.
“Trust in yourself and in the process to keep
going.”
– David Hooper
Call me consumed with obsession for loving the art of
singing so much but, I don’t remember a time in my life when I did not love
vocalizing.
I guess you can say that I was fueled by motivation when
people used to say they thought I was good. I spent most of my life juggling
life, work, my education and singing to keep the excitement and energy present.
At Six years old in the yard
It started as a love of songs. I heard Deniece Williams
singing and would try to imitate her voice and sing “Let’s Hear it For the Boy” from my backyard to all my neighbors. Stacey Lattisaw would suddenly pop up on the radio and I would
sing out loud “I Found Love on A Two Way Street,“ to anyone who was willing to
listen. Songs became committed to memory and then singing them became a part of
who I am.
At every turning point, there was an artist and then a song
that resonated. Michael Jackson did it with “Thriller,” and then I was consumed
with love for him. My neighbors heard me singing his songs so much that for
Christmas one year, they so humbly gave to me a Michael Jackson jacket. I even
had one of his dolls which I thought was the coolest toy ever.
Whitney Houston did it for me with “How Will I Know,” and
then she became the artist that I was imitating all the time. Then it was
Mariah Carey and her song, “Vision of Love.” Over the years, so many others
have connected with me on a deeper level making me want to sing; Chaka Khan,
Amel Larrieux, Sarah Vaughan. Music and
singing became a truth lodged in me so deeply that I couldn’t deny that I really
and truly, loved to sing.
Songwriting
Songwriting was no different. I am a songwriter because by
sheer coincidence, I am a poet and have been writing poetry since the fourth
grade. It became adventurous trying to put melody to mere words on a paper.
Photo from the video for my song "Harmony"
My students are always telling me about their issues with
writing songs and how difficult they find putting melodies to their words. When
I was young, I would take any instrumental and try to apply my lyrics to them
and then they became singable and then they became songs. Doing that helped me
to build a strong connection with the art of songwriting and then it became
using my Korg Triton keyboard to build chords and save them to a new Cakewalk
Sonar project. And so, writing songs slowly turned into more than just writing
lyrics, but the music behind them too; I do not, however, write the music to every song that I write lyrics to.
I will admit that writing songs are not always a
simple walk in the park. Under the strangest circumstances, there are times
that I am writing and lose control; tears fall down my face because the lyrics
come from a deep well in my soul. It takes a lot of faith, strength and
maturity to share them because it is almost like sharing your nakedness to the
world. But, we are meant to make many leaps with faith in life.
“Faith is the external elixir which gives
life,
power and action to the impulse of thought.”
–
Sharon Lechter
From live performance in Arkhangelsk, Russia
I feel so very blessed when I have the opportunity to spice
things up on stage with a song that I was fortunate enough to write, so I am
always jumping at the chance to perform them live. Sometimes I feel like
dancing under the silver moon with excitement when someone tells me they liked my song. It feels like a sun-drenched day when I receive a great review
from someone I did not expect to hear a good word from; especially family.
In short, I want to thank you for your continued support
and hope that in all this maybe you will find a peg of inspiration and feel
motivated to keep pressing on. And to close, I want to share with you one of the many
songs that I have written all the lyrics and all the music to. It is entitled “Keep
Moving On” and can be found on Soundcloud here: https://soundcloud.com/stephanay-jnote/keep-moving-on
Thank you again everybody. Have a motivated and prosperous day!
“We all have dreams, hopes and insecurities”
– David Hooper
It’s my season to indulge on something I realized this morning
as I gathered with a beautiful family, memorializing their loved one who had
recently passed.
The son of the departed spoke about the life his father
lived and directly after that, I was requested to sing a rendition of Paul
Anka, Jaques Revaux and Claude Francois’ English version of Giles Thibault’s “My
Way.” The song an interesting one talking about the way that a person lived
their life and even though they fell, made mistakes and had a full plate, they
stayed in the race and did it their way.
Kind of made me take a backward glance and think about all
the legends that left us behind in 2016; Prince, Natalie Cole, Muhammad Ali,
George Michael, Princess Leia, Paul Von Thadden, etc, and many family members of friends
that are no longer in the land of the living. Yet, to think about the
relationships that were built over time, even with those that were legendary
that we only knew through television through their victorying and then the
scandals and everything else that followed their lives. We loved them anyway. Then I look at myself and think of all my
imperfections that some of the people I have lost over the years and then those
who are still here that decided to love me anyway.
As
Imperfect As I Am
We live our lives in the best way that we know how and folks
in our lives still find ways to reflect on the best of us though we are still works
in progress. Singing “My Way” for the first time and hearing the lyrics that
were featured in this tune was a defining moment for me. Made me realize that
the flaws are what people will miss. Made me realize that my imperfections are
things that I should not look at as a reason to be angry at who I am because they are also
worth loving. Who would think that a song like that would make me consider my
own worth? The recently departed may be feeling his wings against the sky on his
flight up into heaven, but his memory will forever live on. Even in his resting
peacefulness, he inspired me.
I wrote a song that is similar to “My Way,” entitled “You
Loved Me.” Lyrics and vocals by Stephanie Jeannot. Music by Mike LeShore. It is
actually one of my many songs featured on Soundcloud. Please check it out here:
https://soundcloud.com/stephanay-jnote/stephanay-jnotes-tracks-1
Let me know your thoughts on faults and imperfections.
If you listened to the song, tell me what you think? How can I improve it?
It is songwriter Wednesday and being that I am one, I thought I'd let you know that I have an album featuring all original content.
"Finally JNote" is the title of my album which was released on September 11, 2016 and it is available on CDBaby. It features seven original tunes which I wrote. Five of them (tracks 1-4 & 7) were works created with producers Mike LeShore and Fred Simmons. I created all the music on tracks 5 & 6. All lyrics, vocals and vocal arrangements by Stephanie Jeannot.
Your support is most definitely appreciated. Here is the link: http:// www.cdbaby.com/cd/stephaniejeannot3
it depends upon the tides of the mind" - Alice Meynell, 1847-1922
We all go through things that can put a damper on our day and perhaps week. But I definitely do not want to be the lonesome bag lady in the woods, carrying so much baggage that everyone else can see it in my growling, animalesque attitude. This brand new week, is a great week to decide to focus on the good. Here a few things to think about that might make you smile just a little bit.
Actress Viola Davis was honored with a Hollywood star. I loved her in the movie "The Help," and since I started watching her in her leading role on "HTGAWM," I love her as an actress. Awesome news to smile about!
Today is national take the stairs day. Thank God that we are able to take the stairs when the elevators are not working because we have well and able legs that can transport us from one floor to the next.
Next Monday is Martin Luther King Jr day which means many of us can look forward to a long weekend and for those who will have to work, it means a not so crowded road, bus or train which also means an empty seat will be available going to and from work.
I have life-bearing drinking water readily available to me to drink and to keep me hydrated, when needed.
Nothing in this world is free but I woke up and breathed in free oxygen that I did not have to pay for and light from the sun that will brighten the day God created for me to live.
Enjoy Life
"But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
falling like dew upon a thought,
produces that which makes thousands,
perhaps millions, think."
- Aubrey Thomas de Vere, 1814-1902
A few years back, I was returning home from a musical event that I was singing at, with tired eyes. I thought I was okay to drive and got on the road and made it to my exit on the highway and then it happened.
At my exit there is a fork in the road, so I turned my head slightly to see if any cars were coming from the left side and while turning my head back to look before me, my eyes closed for just a second. Next thing I know, my car was smashed into a truck. The truck ripped into the metal right before me and if it had teared into it any further, it would have cut my head off.
My eyes opened to the shock of the crash. I am still amazed that I was able to walk out of the car with no scratches and a story to tell.
I was so depressed the day after that happened that I wanted to just stay draped under my covers crying about all the crazy things that could have happened due to my falling asleep behind the wheel, but family and friends would not allow it. They made sure to help to keep me sane and to try to get me to see the good side of the bad situation. They made me see that even though something bad happened that came with a series of other things I would have to deal with due to my accident, that I could still enjoy the good things in life, as opposed to dwelling on what happened that I would not be able to change. It happened. Things happen. Forrest Gump said it best, "Shit happens!" And then you must move past it.
This story is in short to say that even though we may have stories, dead beat mates, family problems, issues, baggage, bills, jobs, weight on our shoulders, etc., but we still have a life to live. We can either dwell on our issues all day and spend it without a smile or we can balance our emotions by keeping those issues in the back of our minds while also enjoying the beautiful things that life has to offer, and smile about them.
I wrote a song that talks about the balancing of life and life's issues entitled, "Enjoy Life." Lyrics by Stephanie Jeannot. Music by Mike LeShore. Please take the time to listen to the song here: https://youtu.be/qPCvcQLGd2o
"Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling."
- Margaret Lee Runbeck, 1905-1956
Don't worry.
I drink more coffee now than the sink at a 10PM closing of Starbucks,
after a fresh pot was made for the one customer (probably me)
dying for a Venti Pike,
so my energy nowadays behind the wheel has me traveling much lighter,
minus the fear of something like that happening again.
Plus I take naps and I'm not ashamed to admit that. Now there's something else to smile about!
“You can’t just sing it. You got to show it with fire and desire.” This is my favorite quote from the movie "Sing." First time I have been to the movie theater in over two years but a movie with a title about what I love doing the most made it worth the visit. Awesome, awesome, awesome! Another great quote that I loved was, "Do what you love then you won't be scared anymore because you'll be doing it." What a great thought! I loved this movie.
Cartoon! Yes!
But, an animated film that I think can be revered by a person of any age because it is a feel good one that can make you laugh, smile and even tear a little.
Here is something funny to leave you with. On Christmas day, my family and I were playing our annual game of taboo and I got this card that said popcorn. So to get my team to answer correctly, I said what I thought would get them to answer within seconds; "when you go to see a film, you have some." My cousin yelled out, "anxieties." LOL!
Disclaimer: I was not contracted, nor will I be paid for writing my thoughts on the movie "Sing." Further I will not be compensated in anyway by writing about this film.
Makes you think in a very motivating way doesn’t it?
YES
- I can inspire! - I can have victory! - I can be successful and make
money doing what I love to do! - I can overcome the past! - I can transform minds to believe
in me and in the God in me! - And I will make a tireless
effort to grow and progress into a better version of me; the 2017 edition.
Let’s give a round of applause for 2017 while it still has
time to captivate those still with breath.
Cheers to the first week of the new year. Make it a truly
enjoyable and a thoroughly productive one. Here's some music to inspire your Breakthrough in this here year.
Breakthrough is an inspirational original tune with lyrics by Stephanie Jeannot
So what is your new years resolution for 2017? Care to share? Maybe I can be inspired by yours. Whatever it is, I hope that it comes with ease for you to meet that commitment.
I have been singing all my life and always had the dream that maybe someday, I would be able to build on that dream and do things on a more level playing field.
