Caitlin Timmins
Boston, Massachusetts, United States | SELF
Music
Press
Meet Caitlin Timmins, a 16-year-old singer and songwriter from Wisconsin who is giving new meaning to the term “do-it-yourself.” Not only does Caitlin write all of her own music, she also records, mixes, edits and produces it, too! And all from the comfort of her bedroom. So just who is this multi-talented gal?
Caitlin started singing when she was tiny, and it’s all she has ever wanted to do. “Music has just always been there,” she explains. So when her mom came home one day two years ago with a new MacBook and the music creation software GarageBand, Caitlin was hooked. “I played around on it for hours,” she remembers. “I was so amazed that you could make and record music from home.”
And now? She’s become so tech-savvy that she has two recording software programs, a microphone and a sound box in her room. “I learned the programs the same way you learn anything else—practice,” she admits. “I didn’t have anyone I could ask for help, so I had to dive right in and learn on my own. It took a few months before I actually knew what I was doing, and it was frustrating, but it was definitely worth it.”
Caitlin’s hard work and perseverance are starting to pay off. She just launched her own website, www.caitlintimmins.com, and her single “Magazines” is available for purchase on iTunes. Plus, she’s got a solid crop of loyal fans who pop up all over her MySpace page. Pretty awesome for a girl who is still in high school.
But her favorite part about making music isn’t the prospect of a million dollar recording deal. Instead, Caitlin loves that she can share her music with friends and fans all over the country. “I want to reach as many people as possible with my music, because I believe that I was meant to share it with people,” she says. “I’ve realized that it’s not about me, it’s about what I give back to everyone else through my music.”
Plus, she’s also aware of the power she has to inspire other girls. After all, it’s not often that you find a teenager who can build such a successfully budding music career. “I want girls everywhere to know that anything really is possible,” she declares. “If you want it bad enough, you’ll get it. It takes hard work, big dreams and a little bit of luck, but if you have those things, I don’t think you can go wrong. I’m living proof that you don’t have to wait for somebody else to decide that you deserve success. You can go out there and get it yourself. So chase your dreams!”
Be sure to check out the links below (we recommend “Magazines,” her single on iTunes) if you’d like to learn more about Caitlin and her music, and let us know what you think! - GL Magazine
Discography
The Lie - Single (December 2011)
Song for the Legend - Single (May 2011)
Firework (cover) - Single (January 2011)
On the Bright Side (November 2009)
Magazines - Single (August 2008)
Photos
Bio
Born and raised in the town of Fitchburg, WI, singer/songwriter Caitlin Timmins had a knack for performing since a very young age. Her hobbies included singing the ABC’s for anyone who would listen, making up songs with her best friend, and singing along to the Beach Boys with her Dad. By the time she was 11, she had been taking piano lessons for six years and joined her first choir - and the spark was lit. In her 6th grade choir concert, Timmins was given a solo in the song “I Got Rhythm” by George Gershwin, blowing the audience away with a voice and confident performance not even her family knew she had.
Timmins went on to sing in a number of different choirs including the Madison Youth Choirs in Madison, WI and the Wisconsin State Honors Choir. When she was 13, she appeared as one of the female vocalists in the American Girl Company theme song, “I Like Your Style”. However, it was when she was 14 that she started wanting to perform her own original songs. She started using the GarageBand application on the iMac computer that her mother, Laura Timmins used for her work as a polymer clay jeweler, and wrote and recorded her first few original tracks. This inspired Caitlin to create a number of profiles on music-promoting websites - thus launching her into the online music scene where she acquired thousands of new fans.
During her high school career at Verona Area High School in Verona, WI, Timmins became her high school’s go-to “Star Spangled Banner” singer. She’d sing for football games, basketball games, hockey games, swim meets, and even went on to sing for minor league baseball games and state swim meets. By the time she was 17 and a senior in high school, she had released one single, Magazines (2008), and her first album On the Bright Side (2009). Timmins then received word that she had been accepted into the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA with a scholarship.
Shortly after arriving to Berklee in the fall of 2010, Timmins was notified that her song “Waitin’ on a Fairytale” made her a regional finalist for the Midwest in the NewSong Mountain Stage Songwriting Competition. Also in her first year of attendance, Timmins released Firework (2011) – a swing/pop cover of Katy Perry’s well-known hit. As a sophomore at Berklee, Timmins has released three singles: Song For the Legend (2011), Lungs (2011), and The Lie (2011). Due to her success in her songwriting, she now has a number of noteworthy accomplishments under her belt at Berklee. She was selected to perform in the Berklee in the Round Series at The Red Room in Café 939 alongside Berklee faculty and successful singer/songwriters Susan Cattaneo and Nancy Morris. Timmins’ song “The Lie” was ranked #1 in the Berklee College of Music Performing Songwriter’s Showcase. Finally, Timmins’ unreleased track “Hollow” most recently made her one of the 12 finalists in the Berklee Songwriter’s Competition – landing her a performance slot in Berklee’s largest venue, the Berklee Performance Center.
Timmins still lives in Boston and is currently a Songwriting major in her sophomore year of attendance at Berklee College of Music. She continues to write new songs every week, and is working towards releasing a new album in the near future.
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