#StephSingsChristmas Challenge -Â Enter To Win Prizes
Itâs finally December and I know a lot of you guys are excited about Christmas music. Â
Stephanie Samuel LOVES christmas music so much she is continuing her #StephSingsChristmas tradition for the third straight year. Â This is where Stephanie will sing a Christmas song everyday until Christmas. Â
We are so excited for Stephanie because she just finished recording her EP called âSecret Lightâ and It will be released in the next week or so (we will announce when itâs available đ). Â It is so cool to see one her dreams come true and to think that it all started with her Acapella video. Â You can learn more about Stephanie and her journey in the Q&A below.
To honor Stephanieâs accomplishment, we are turning this weeks challenge into a Daily challenge and will be giving away cool prizes. Â Be sure to check the featured video everyday.
We will select three winners on December 7, 2016 and you will win:
One copy of Stephanieâs new EP âSecret Light"
One Exclusive Acapella T-shirt
One Promo code to unlock all the In-app purchases in Acapella
Feature on the discover page
Collab on one of #StephSingsChristmas video
*Instrumentalists and vocalists all welcome to participate
*Multiple entires accepted. Â We encourage you to participate daily
Q&A With @StephanieSamuel
1. Tell us about yourself.
Hi! I'm Stephanie Samuel, I live in Los Angeles, but I grew up in Fort Worth and Portland and everywhere between. I am a singer, songwriter and also pursuing acting as a career. I've always loved singing and acting, and I grew up performing in musicals. As a kid, I was frustrated that I didn't have a soprano voice like most other little girls. Belting out a high note was never going to work for me, and that's when I discovered how harmony could work for my voice. I took pride in figuring out harmonies to any song and it grew my confidence as an alto. As my voice developed and I learned how to use it, I can now sing a broad range and my childhood frustration has turned into a blessing of being able to quickly pick up harmonies and blend well with other parts of the song. The acapella app is the perfect hobby for a harmony lover like me!
2. How did the album come together?
After doing #StephSingsChristmas on the Acapella app last year, my friend forwarded my videos to a songwriter named Andrea Hunter. She loved the videos and we scheduled a meet up. At first, we just were going to do some co-writing on things she had been working on, but we quickly realized we had something special with the first Christmas song we co-wrote. From there, my friend Josh introduced me to an amazing executive producer, Glyn Morgan, who was actually hoping to work on a Christmas project. When we met, it was like destiny, there were so many cool little confirmations that we should work together. I felt the project would be safe in his hands and we could make something magical. Andrea and I launched a Kickstarter and miraculously raised over $16,000 for the EP, and meanwhile, I recorded demos for Glyn with a fantastic live band. In September, Glyn and I flew to Vancouver, WA to record in a beautiful studio, and I got to stay with my family in Portland during that week. It was so special. The team that worked on the album is world class! My arranger, Jeff Jansen, had such cool vision and we had some killer studio musicians who have worked with the likes of John Mayer, Pink, Tori Kelly, Colbie Caillat, and Sheryl Crow. I can't wait for the world to hear these songs!
3. Musical influences? Â Favorite genre to sing?
I grew up listening to everything from The Beatles to Bing Crosby to Alison Krauss and even went through a phase where all I listened to was late 70's funk and disco. I love poppy songwriting with fun hooks, but I also love storytelling and groovy vibey music. Currently, I'm feeling inspired by Beck, John Mayer, Feist, Elbow, Taylor Swift, Death Cab For Cutie and Lorde.
Even though it's not how my album sounds, my favorite genre to sing has to be swinging big band jazz like Ella Fitzgerald, Rosemary Clooney or the Andrews Sisters. It's fun to transform my voice and sing all those fun harmonies and tricky parts!
4. Any advice you can share to someone who wants to record an album?
Just do it! It is lots of hard work, but SO worth it to step out in faith and dream big! Don't be afraid to ask for help. One of my best lessons from this journey is that I can't do it alone. Also, don't be afraid to be vulnerable with your songwriting, people connect with your art when you're being genuine. Write and sing from the heart.
5. Where can people get the new album?
It will be available on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, Apple Music, and everywhere music is sold online! You can also check out my website www.stephaniesamuelmusic.com .
