Biography
“Something about soul speaks to me. And if you dip it in some blues, it’s even better. It has nothing to do with the notes; it’s about the story and the feeling. It isn’t always pretty, but you can always feel it when it’s done right. That’s all I want to do. I want to sing my story in a way that both the listener and I can feel.” Missy Andersen
Born in Detroit, Michigan and raised in Queens, New York, Missy’s first real memory of singing is at age six. Her mother entered Missy in a child talent contest and everyday she practiced with her after school. It was her favorite thing to do. For some reason the contest was cancelled and her afternoon practice sessions stopped, but Missy was hooked from then on. “Singing would always be my friend and I would turn to it whenever I needed to express something I couldn’t find the words to say,” says Missy.
Her parents had an extensive music collection that included lots of soul, R&B, blues, jazz, and gospel. Her favorite songs were always the ones that told a story. It wasn’t always the most popular song on the album, but she would play them over and over and over. She listened to Gladys Knight, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, The Staple Singers, Teddy Pendergrass and a host of others. And like many before her, Missy mimicked other singers until she found her own voice. Later she would discover Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughn, and Billie Holiday and that eventually lead her to O.V. Wright, Bobby Bland, Little Milton, James Carr, Ray Charles, Ann Peebles, and Irma Thomas.
Although singing is her love, she had her first stab at the music business while in her teens with the rap single, “Be For Real” under the moniker, Denyce "Flip" Isaac. Although the record’s success was small, it still led to her being the opening act for Cissy Houston in a string of club dates. It wasn’t long before Missy turned back to singing, honing her skills fronting local bands as well as doing studio sessions as a background vocalist.
Moving to San Diego, California, she met local blues man, Earl Thomas in the late 90’s. It was then that she became one of the original Juke Joint Jezebelles, a gospel, blues, and soul quartet, who provided backup vocals for Earl’s stage show. She played and toured with Earl for several years hitting festivals and venues in the U.S. and Europe. Earl Thomas and the Jezebelles shared the stage with Ray Charles, B.B. King, Robert Cray, John Hammond, Keb’ Mo’, Kenny Neal, and The Meters.
After fronting San Diego-based band, Tell Mama, Missy felt it was time to strike out on her own. Her self-titled debut album, Missy Andersen, released on Main Squeeze Records, is an organic mix of soul and blues from another era with a healthy dose of today. She displays her talents on 8 tunes, including two originals - ‘New Feet’ (track 2) and ‘Stand Up and Dance’ (track 8). Missy Andersen (vocals) is joined by her husband and bandleader Heine Andersen (guitar), Asmus Jensen (drums), Jeppe Juul (organ) and Søren Bøjgaard (bass). Additional musicians include Nathan James playing Dobro slide guitar on track 8.
Missy Andersen serves on the board of Blues Lovers United of San Diego (BLUSD) and is a lead presenter in its sponsored Blues in the Schools (BITS) program.
(Danish version)
Missy Andersen, som er født i Detroit og opvokset i Queens i New York, har sunget lige så lang tilbage hun kan huske. Hendes første møde med musikindustrien var i hendes teenageår med rap- singlen ”Be for Real”. Selvom singlen ikke opnåede den store pladesucces medførte den alligevel, at hun i en periode var fast opvarmningsnavn for Cissy Houston (Whitney Houstons mor) ved hendes koncerter. Senere videreudviklede hun sit sangtalent, som forsanger i flere lokale bands og som korsanger på flere studieoptagelser.
I 90’erne flyttede Missy til San Diego, hvor hun mødte den lokale blues- & soulmusiker Earl Thomas. Hun blev en af de oprindelige sangere i gospel/blues/soul-kvartetten The Juke Joint Jezbelles, som udgjorde koret i Earl’s shows. Gennem flere år turnerede hun med Earl, hvor de optrådte på festivaler og klubber i både USA og Europa.
Efter at have været frontfigur i San Diego-bandet Tell Mama, følte Missy at det var tid til at komme videre og finde sin egen vej.
Med rødderne solidt plantet i R&B-, soul- og bluestraditionen, leverer Missy hver sang lidenskabeligt, overbevisende og som en kvinde, der har levet det liv, hun synger om.
Bag sig har hun et dansk band med fire af de rigtig tunge drenge inden for genren. Bandet består af:
Søren Bøjgaard, bassist fra Thorbjørn Risager.
Jeppe Juul, Orgel fra Kira and The Kindred Spirits.
Asmus Jensen, Trommeslager fra Omar and The Howlers.
Heine Andersen, guitarist fra Candye Kane
Instrumentation
U.S.
Missy Andersen, vocals
Heine Andersen, guitar
Rafael Salmon, keyboards
David Coats, drums
Tyler Eaton, bass
Europe
Missy Andersen, vocals
Heine Andersen, guitar
Jeppe Juul, organ
Asmus Jensen, drums
Søren Bøjgaard, bass
Discography
Missy Andersen (April 2009)
Links
| http://www.missyandersen.com |