Soraia

Artist Information

Biography

Our story starts on a particularly cold, gray winter evening. Two men stand hovering over the lifeless body of Mansour. One panics while the other holds her - tears streaming from his face dripping onto her pale skin as a needle, which provided a potent shot of cocaine to her left arm, lies next to her motionless body. There was no pulse.

For Mansour, this was just one of many failed attempts at ending her life.

Her middle class upbringing masked an emotionally and physically abusive home life that became hopeless when her mother, who was her protector, her confidante, and her best friend, passed away when Soraia was only 17. She quickly descended into a destructive lifestyle of drug and alcohol abuse. The next four years brought violent relationships, escalating drug use, and the witnessing of horrific events while living with junkies and pushers.

Try as she may, she could not escape the self-imposed abusive lifestyle which had become her reality. Penniless, homeless and left for dead, that fateful night should have been the epilogue of Soraia's turbulent life. But it wasn't. Soraia was rescued by the only person who could save her: herself.

With a newfound resolve, she got sober, re-entered college, and finished in two years with a teaching degree and the hope in her heart to finally begin a life she was yet waiting to live. Still, teaching proved not enough to quell her intense longing for expression. She turned to poetry, writing, and finally her first love, singing. Driven and determined, tough and still tender, she began her singing career winning over fans immediately with her passion, pain, and raw emotion. Soraia formed her band in late 2004, and began writing songs and performing live anywhere and everywhere she could. With the same intensity and resolve she had approached every addiction she ever had, she went after her heart’s ultimate desire.

Soraia gives life to her experiences through her voice, and molds the best and worst of her life story through song. A warrior at heart, nowhere is the true Soraia more visible than on stage during one of the band’s ferociously energetic, intoxicating live shows. Her voice showcases the will to survive with a defiant, full-throated vocal performance reminiscent of the great women of rock, such as Grace Slick and Tina Turner. Her sexuality and rawness demand attention of even the most passive of listeners- inviting all of us to the danger rock n’ roll promised to be.

Whether in a hot, sweaty rock club or a massive amphitheatre, Soraia’s charisma and spirit transcends the concert stage and reaches all those who witness SORAIA live. Rarely will you see a band with so much magic and soul as SORAIA. And never will you hear a story so full of hope and heart as that of Soraia Mansour. Her every breath is a testament that miracles really do exist, and that the underdog really can win the whole world.

Instrumentation

Soraia Mansour - Singer, Lead Vocals & Percussion
Travis Smith - Bass guitar and backing vocals
Jason Miraglia - Drums
Brian Cassidy - Lead Guitar
Anthony Renzulli - Rhythm Guitar
Mike Lawson - Backing Vocals, keyboard

Discography

"In the Valley of Love and Guns" - 2013 (LP)
"Shed The Skin" - 2008 (LP)


Here's a current listing of all stations playing Soraia in rotation:

--93.7 WSTW fm "Hometown Heroes" Show
--93.3 WMMR fm Artist of the Month November/rotation immminent
--88.7 WRSU fm New Jersey's Rutger's University
--WJBJ in Brookhaven, NJ
--96.5 fm Classic Rock in Daleville, IN

PODCASTS:

--The Rock Show Podcast (London, England) - http://www.therockshow.co.uk/
--Dalecast.co.uk (United Kingdom)
--Bestradiopodcast.net (Chicago, Illinois)
--Nightguyundertherock.podshow.com (Israel)
--"Here Comes the Flood" (the Netherlands)
--http://mothpod.podshow.com/ (Indiana)
---StrafeRight (North Carolina)
---Wasting Time (Illinois)
---Top of the Podsafes


**All of the above podcasts can be found on the podsafe network:
www.podsafemusicnetwork.com

Official Website

http://www.soraia.com

Links

• Facebook
• MySpace
• Twitter

Audio

• Love Like Voodoo
  Listen  
• Runaround
  Listen  
• Wild Imagination
  Listen  
• Like A Woman Would
  Listen  

Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Origivation Magazine Review [+ Show ]
  

  "Dirty rock and roll at its dirtiest. Lead singer Sue is so expressive, so involved, and so dam..."Dirty rock and roll at its dirtiest. Lead singer Sue is so expressive, so involved, and so damn sexy, that Soraia is impossible to ignore."

• "Spark Weekly" DE Magazine [+ Show ]
  

  "'What to Expect' (when seeing Soraia's live show): Some pretty crazy energy....it&..."'What to Expect' (when seeing Soraia's live show): Some pretty crazy energy....it's nothing short of magic."

• "Record Review" U.K.'s Black Velvet Magazine [+ Show ]
  

  "Shed the Skin"...it's a gutsy rocker seeping in attitude. Sue's voice brings back..."Shed the Skin"...it's a gutsy rocker seeping in attitude. Sue's voice brings back memories of the golden greats, like early Tina Turner and Janis Joplin...that soulful, powerful quality...."

• Jon Bon Jovi scouts local band Soraia at South Street rock club [+ Show ]
  

  Jon Bon Jovi, who does some talent scouting for EMI Records, checked out local rockers Soraia Wednes...Jon Bon Jovi, who does some talent scouting for EMI Records, checked out local rockers Soraia Wednesday night at The Legendary Dobbs (304 South). He hung out at the show with his old pal 93.3 WMMR's Pierre Robert.
  
  The group played its industry showcase for Bon Jovi and producer Obie O'Brien who recorded Soraia's CD "Shed the Skin," and who does A&R work for Universal, as well as entertainment lawyer Michael Guido.
  
  The band has history with Bon Jovi. Soraia opened for the group at the Wells Fargo Center in March 2011 and on at least one other concert in New York the year before. Additionally, Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora played on a track on "Shed the Skin."

• Soraia's 'In the Valley of Love and Guns' showcases everything great about rock 'n' roll [+ Show ]
  

  Soraia's 'In the Valley of Love and Guns' showcases everything great about rock 'n&#...Soraia's 'In the Valley of Love and Guns' showcases everything great about rock 'n' roll
  
  "At the heart of the album is Soraia's voice — a powerhouse instrument in its own right. Her throaty vocals are alternately sultry, angry and, occasionally, even a bit tender, but are always passionate and commanding. This is a voice you have no choice but to pay heed to...."
  
  "But 60 years after the birth of rock 'n' roll, it's virtually impossible to make a straight-ahead rock album without evoking at least some comparisons to what has come before. The trick is to take these elements and whip them up into something that sounds like your own. In that, Soraia's new album is an unqualified success. It's a feel-good record that deserves to be played loud...."
  

• Rock queen [+ Show ]
  

  "The new product is a singer and a band that harken to the authentic blues- and soul-inspired r..."The new product is a singer and a band that harken to the authentic blues- and soul-inspired rock of the 1960s and ‘70s, while inviting comparisons to popular 21st-century artists like the late Amy Winehouse, Adele and The Black Keys."
  - William Kenny
  
  “I sense that Sue has a timelessness about her voice and her delivery.”
  - Obie O'Brien

• UK's Black Velvet Magazine 2013 [+ Show ]
  

  Soraia tells us how her past made her the tough, fierce woman she is today, how she gained admiratio...Soraia tells us how her past made her the tough, fierce woman she is today, how she gained admiration for Jon Bon Jovi as a songwriter when writing with him, how working on the follow-up to ‘Shed The Skin’ has been an eye-opening experience and how sharing her passion and pain is a beautiful thing.

Setlist

Love Like Voodoo
Like a Woman Would
Never Again
Against the Wall
Love Amnesia
Want What I Want
Wild Imagination
Good Ain't Good Enough
Hell-Oh
Runaround
Radio Sister
Hurt Like Hell
Have Love Will Travel (cover)
Jolene (cover)
Summertime Blues (cover)

Basic Requirements

Calendar