Jessica Ray
Memphis, Tennessee, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2005 | INDIE
Music
Press
Meet Jessica Ray! She’s a current Salon 22 Bombshell who spends a couple hours each week getting the Allison treatment. Learn more about what Jessica Ray is working on, how you can support her, and why we say she’s a Bombshell to Watch in 2013!
Name (+ Your Twitter Handle): Jessica Ray ( @missray21)
Current Profession: Entertainer (Singer for Memphis Soul Revue)
Dream Job: Becoming a recording artist as well as a brand
College: Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Studies. Aiming to start my Master’s program this fall
Who/what motivates you to chase your dreams? My family and my passion for what I do. Music has always been a part of me and can’t really see my life without it.
What has been your biggest professional achievement so far? Opening for Dru Hill, Singing with Aarron Neville, and performing on BET.
What has been your biggest personal achievement so far? Becoming a member of Life Church and getting closer to God
Describe one professional setback and how you overcame it. Although I’m grateful for the work that I’m doing and what I’ve accomplished thus far, I have auditioned for a few things and didn’t make it. That continues to humble me and allows me to go home and work on becoming a better artist.
What do you do to give back to your community and/or church? I’m serving on the media ministry at The Life Church and plan to start serving in their Generous House. I also sing occasionally at Make-a Wish Foundation and Boys and Girls Club benefit events.
What advice would you give other young women in the Mid-south? Stay close to your family and God. Always be true to who you are. Always work hard for your dreams. No one is a better you than YOU.
Do you read books? If so, what are you reading now? I really don’t read books, but I have been pondering over reading a book called “WICKED“. This is a musical that I absolutely love, so I’ve been thinking about going back and reading the book.
Describe your current hair routine? I go to Salon 22 about once per week. Depending on how my hair stylist Allison styles my hair, I wrap it, put rods in it at night, or simply wet it in the morning and go.
What’s your go-to hair care product? Design Edge Control! OMG! Best product for edges!
Do you feel that you are more successful when you look your best? Explain. I think that, in general, looking your best can make you perform better in your profession - whatever it is –because you become more confident. Looking your best doesn’t mean looking the way people look in magazines; it’s about looking good in your own skin.
Describe your current focus. How can other bombshells support you? My current focus is career. Hopefully through my career, I can help other artists and charities. Bombshells in Memphis (and around the world) can support me by attending a show, liking my fan page, visiting my website, or just spreading good news about what I’m doing. Women supporting women is a powerful thing. BOMBSHELLS UNITE! - Salon 22
When the University of Memphis launched its centennial celebration with a concert at the Cannon Center on September 30, 2011, the audi- ence sighed in awe when Aaron Neville, the evening’s headliner, reached for the hand of Sound Fuzion singer and University of Memphis senior Jessica Griffin during their duet of “Don’t Know Much.” The famous tune, performed in 1989 as a duet by Neville and Linda Ronstadt, and the give-and-take between the seasoned performer and the young singer clasping hands, was one of the evening’s most magical moments.
“I didn’t know if I would be singing the duet with Aaron Neville un- til our rehearsal with him on the afternoon of the performance,” Griffin says. “Professor Edwards told me about the possibility two weeks before the concert, but the first chance he had to ask Neville was when we rehearsed with him that day.”
Lawrence Edwards, professor of music and co-director of Sound Fuzion, the University’s popular touring ensemble, had contacted Neville’s agent to propose the duet, but never received a response.
“I was confident that he would like Jessica,” Edwards says. “She has been with Sound Fuzion for five years and I knew she would be able to do an excellent job. Life is too short to let opportunities like this pass and so I approached him during the rehearsal. He responded positive- ly, we ran with it, and Jessica became ‘his Linda’ for the evening." Exceptional in its own right, the duet did more than highlight the young and the experienced performer. It showcased the wide variety of extraordi- nary talent at the University of Memphis and in the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, which put on an evening of world-class performances. -
University of Memphis student Jessica Ray is just a couple of days away from heading to the Big Apple and hitting the '106 & Park' stage. Ray joins FOX13 with more on how you can support this local talent for the popular BET contest. -
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
Jessica Ray is a dynamically expressive vocalist that renders energetically compelling performances. As a poised leader in re-introducing Memphis-based talent into the national and global mainstream cultures, she has emerged as the polished performance act” Jessica Ray.”
When she appeared in local Broadway plays through Memphis City Schools, the experience taught her how to exhibit true musical maturity and she received a definite understanding of the fine craft of singing and acting.
Jessica Ray has professionally delivered performances to major businesses, charities, and sporting events across the country including the Kentucky Derby and Subway. She have displayed awesome performances of the Top 40 hits that cover a wide range of musical eras within a diversity of genres. She has also appeared on B.E.T’s 106 & Park, opened for Dru Hill , the Drifters, Gene Chandler, The Platters and Jerry Butler and sung a duet with world renown music artist, Aaron Neville. Jessica Ray has proven her prowess countless times to wide and accepting audiences with thanks to her dad, Ray Griffin, a bass guitar player who has been nominated twice for a Grammy for such works as Down Home Blues, Ring My Bell, Taxi and Disco Duck and finally her uncle, the famous jazz composer, Donald Brown. Jessica Ray's work ethic has exceeded her own expectations and potential when it comes to her performance level. She is, fun, corky, loving and talented but more importantly , a hard worker. She is Jessica Ray.
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