Steven Drakes

Steven Drakes or DRAKES, as he’s known in his native surroundings, was born in N.E. Washington, D.C., where his father, an aspiring artist himself, enrolled him in piano lessons at the age of five. He can remember even at that early age, that these lessons were what he looked forward to most. He would continue experimenting with music though his early childhood and teenage years, writing over one hundred songs for many different genres, including R&B, Hip Hop, Jazz, Alternative, Blues and Classical. As his thirst for musical creativity grew, he began producing, and found it easy to put together great tracks that complimented his versatile style and sound. In 1998, DRAKES enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he served his country for 5 years, while maintaining and improving his craft. Upon departing the military, he embarked on a mission to get his music out to the masses. Along the way, he partnered with Carl Rushing, owner of Gemstar Pro Studios. Since then, he’s been able to produce, harmonize, write and sing hooks for many artists, Including himself. In the summer of 2008, DRAKES competed to perform in the “Scion Summer Soul Fest”, in which one of the judges stated, “This dude shouldn’t even be in this competition. He’s way ahead of the other artists”. He went on to perform at the Fest, which was held at the 930 Club in Washington, D.C., and hasn’t looked back since. His fan base continues to grow, reaching a broad demographic of “real music lovers”. Now he feels it’s his time to put together his own project and let the public hear exactly what Rock ‘n Soul is all about. Here are just a few quotes from some of the people who’ve had the pleasure of working with him:
“Steve does great session work. He masters harmonies effortlessly and quickly on multiple songs in a single session. He is extremely creative and can assist with lyric writing. Working with Steve is a great investment in your CD project” -Wendy McIntyre
“Seconds after hearing my songs for the first time, Steve sang these beautiful, complex harmonies that transformed my songs from “girl with a guitar” to beautiful music. I recommend him to any artist working within any style” -Hannah Spiro
“Steve is a rare talent, good spirit and has helped countless vocal artists since I’ve known him” -Carl Rushing .