Andréa Lisa

As a young girl growing up in West Auckland, Andrea Lisa never thought she'd one day tour with Grammy award-winning artists around the world.

But that's exactly the dream she's now living.

"I started singing apparently from the time I was born and I started playing the guitar when I was like 14 and a half, when I started I just went all in," she said.

Ms Lisa started a band in 2011 which had performance contracts all over the world.

It's what led her to meet twelve-time Grammy nominated artist, and Grammy winner, Kirk Whalum.

He was so impressed when he heard her music that he asked her if he could feature one of her songs on his upcoming album.

"I flipped out...he's actually one my favourite musicans, like, of all time."

She and Whalum recorded the song Get Your Wings Up - a song about learning to fly yourself before trying to fix others.

"When I was like maybe 19 years old, my mum pulled me aside and said 'Hey, I know you like to take all of the birds with the broken wings, and you try to fix them' and she's talking about my friends,. She said, you need to make sure that you are strong and make sure that you can fly before you try and fix the little broken birds."

It's something she feels like she didn't apply to her life for years, and kept getting burnt, until she recorded the song with Whalum.

"That experience really gave me a lot of confidence and confirmation that this is what I'm meant to do, music and songwriting... I decided to put myself first for the first time." - Radio New Zealand

Today we’d like to introduce you to Andréa Lisa.

Andréa, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in South Africa and at the age of 8, my family and I moved to Auckland, New Zealand. I’ve been singing since I was a little toddler, and I’ve always had a love for singing but I was very shy to sing in front of people. My first public performance was at age 16. A friend of mine entered the two of us into a competition without my consent, and we ended up winning the competition to my surprise. I started playing the guitar when I was 14, almost 15 years old, and I started out studying classical guitar and completed all the grades, that was all I focused on for about four years. After high school, I went to University where I completed a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance, with a major in Guitar and an understudy in Voice at the New Zealand School of Music. I started writing music and lyrics from around 16 years old, slowly building up a repertoire of original music, and by the time I finished my degree I was ready to start a serious band and focus more on live performance and my original music. After going through a few different musicians, I put together a four-piece band and started we performing around New Zealand. Shortly after that, we started traveling to Australia to do shows in the different cities, we also recorded my debut EP called ‘So Sweet’ that same year (2011). After being together for about six months, we all moved to Brisbane, Australia, where we lived together with my parents. We practiced daily for about nine months before we landed our first performance contract. For six years we continued doing performance contracts in places like Dubai, France and on Cruise Ships as well as freelancing gigs around Europe, New Zealand and Australia in-between contracts. In 2017 my band and I decided to go our separate ways and focus on our individual careers, this all started after our drummer could no longer perform due to an unfortunate wrist injury he had been dealing with for a while. Later that year I received an email from one of my biggest influences of all time, saxophonist/songwriter and Grammy Award-winning artist Kirk Whalum, asking if I would like to be featured playing guitar on his upcoming album ‘Humanité’. Of course, I was so excited, but what I didn’t know was that he would choose an original song of mine that I would get to sing and play guitar on, a song called ‘Get Your Wings Up’, a piece I wrote back in 2011. The album will be released in September this year. Last year I visited LA in March/April and also in November, I intended on only visiting for one month in November, but a few days before I was due to fly back to New Zealand, I decided not to go. A spur of the moment decision that changed my whole life, I spent a lot of my time writing new music and spending time alone, thinking about what I really wanted to achieve in my career, I realised that songwriting is really a big part of who I am and that I wanted to focus more on that and recording and producing. I ended up getting an amazing manager and lawyer who helped me through the extreme process of getting an O1 working visa, which was approved in April this year, I can now stay and work in the US for the next three years! This year I also got offered an amazing tour with artist’s Kirk Whalum and Jonathan Butler. A six month tour around the United States, playing guitar and singing in an amazing six-piece band, as well as being able to play my song ‘Get Your Wings Up’ as part of the set. Since being in LA, I have also had the honour of working with artist Ralph Johnson (Earth Wind & Fire), playing lead guitar on a song of his called ‘Co-Swagit’. I also have projects in the works with Grammy award-winning Bassist Stanley Clarke, and most recently I joined a band called ‘Detroit City’, a band conceptualized by Paul Blair (producer and collaborators with Lady Gaga) and led by Musical Director, David Young. An all-female band that will be performing the music from the album ‘The Genesis’, under Quincy Jones new record label ‘Q&R Music’. Our first public performance will be at The Peppermint Club in West Hollywood on September 13th, 2019 at 8:00 p.m. You can check out Eventbrite for tickets.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It definitely has not been a smooth road, It sure has been educational though and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Being in this industry has taught me how to toughen up, and still today I get surprised by what’s under the surface and what artists have to deal with. Anyone who works in the arts has dealt with rejection, empty promises and financial challenges. At the end of the day I try not to make the same mistakes over and over, and I’m working on being more aware and careful before accepting offers. I would be here all day If I started telling you some of the struggles I have had along the way, but for sure my worst challenge was getting over a gig where my band didn’t receive a payment of over $20,000. It still makes me feel ill if I think about it, but hey! Life goes on, if we hold onto the past we cannot grow.

Please tell us about your work.
I truly believe that first and foremost, I am a storyteller. Writing music is my biggest love, and when I get to share my own music on stage that brings me extreme joy. I love all genres but I am mostly associated with RnB/Soul and Contemporary Jazz. I’m really into Alternative and Indie music too. I am most passionate about songwriting, I think I am probably most known for my guitar playing, and I do love improvising and taking solo’s on the guitar. People seem to get a kick out of a chick playing lead guitar, these days it’s becoming a little more popular and I’m super glad for it!

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Nothing, because I wouldn’t have learnt the lessons I have learnt so far. But if I had to choose, I would say to 16 year old me… “Just go for it! Don’t be shy or hold back on anything that you have to offer!”

Contact Info:

Website: andrealisa.com
Phone: 8183982329
Email: andrealisaband@gmail.com
Instagram: andrealisa.comm
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrealisag/
Twitter: AndreaLisa7 - VoyageLA

To listen to the sound of Kirk Whalum’s saxophone let’s you know that the man has a blessed tone.

In fact, upon meeting the seasoned musician during his recent four-day stint at Washington D.C.’s historic Blues Alley jazz club – he consistently uses the word “blessed” or “bless you,” during significant parts of his conversation.
Meanwhile, the Memphis son of a preacher-man, brought down the proverbial house by playing a blend of his compositions, in addition to funky cover songs that were palatable to the largely old-school jazz and soul-music generationals in the house. Remember, Kirk has played sideman to Whitney Houston, George Duke and Luther Vandross, to name a few.

He then changed the groove to swing-bebop, mainly to showcase his and his band’s dexterity and flexibilities performing straight-ahead jazz in this traditional-jazz venue. Miles Davis’ “Straight No Chaser” and John Coltraine’s “Giant Steps” were smokin’ hot covers on a cold January night.

They played up-tempos, and challenged Memphis drummer Marcus Finnie’s bebop drumming techniques, but the young stickman laid down the slick-quick patterns required of the genre. Art “Buhainas” Blakey and Kenny “Klook” Clark would have been proud.

As a native Memphian, with long residential stops in Houston and Dallas, Whalum is a supreme soul brother, with Texas-flavored roots that connects his family gospels with Dallas mega minister, T.D. Jakes.
What sounds like an anointed tenor saxophone, soprano sax and flute – is what it is – a mellow tone, unlike no others. Afterall, he has played sideman to the likes of George Duke, Whitney Houston and Luther Vandross.

During the final show of a four-night, eight-show bill, Mr. Whalum and his band were fresh and funky during their final Sunday night show. Lady guitarist Andrea Lisa was a surprising special treat. Though she noted that her background comes from listening to hornmen, like her boss, it was easy to realize that the South African native is also influenced by her countryman – Jonathan Butler. She also mentioned George Benson as an influence. Bassist Braylon Lacy was masterful during swing sessions and with the funk. At one point during a solo, he mimicked a patented lick from the Willie Weeks’ bass solo from the Donny Hathaway Live album from 1972.

Lacy, a Dallas native is also a mainstay with his home-girl, Eryka Badu. Philly born pianist John Stoddart rounded out the quartet with chord progressions that laid fat groundwork for Whalum’s and Lisa’s melodic improvisational twists and turns.

The 12-time Grammy Award nominee played a few cuts from his latest CD, “Humanite’” and offered Ms. Lisa a chance to spotlight her composition on his current release, “Get Your Wings Up.”

Overall, it was a scintillating night of good jazz, sweet soul, poppin’ funk and wholesome gospel chops. Thanks Mr. Whalum. - AFRO