Stacey Koziel

Stacey Koziel wants to turn your iPod into a film reel and your earbuds into a projector. Last March, she released her sophomore album, Now Playing, which tells the story of a couple enraptured in a tumultuous, long-term relationship.
"I wanted it to play out like a movie from start to finish," Koziel said. "It's kind of cheesy, but that's why it's called Now Playing. It tells the story of a long-term relationship, from the good parts to the bad parts. It's got songs about being totally in love. It's got a song about infidelity. It's got a song about the roller coaster that relationships are."

Now Playing takes a departure from Koziel's 2010 album, Naïve. Koziel explained that she aimed for a "full band" feel throughout the album, resulting in an "almost rock and roll" ambience.

"A lot of the songs on [Naïve], I wrote maybe four or five years ago," Koziel said. "I've done a lot of growing up since then, and this album is a reflection of that."

But there's a bigger purpose behind Now Playing. The plot is based around elements of Koziel's personal life, and she hopes that her listeners will relate to and draw some amount of meaning from the story.

"The biggest compliments I've ever gotten are when people come up to me after the show and say ‘that one song, that's my life'," Koziel said. "I want people to know they're not alone in these situations. I feel like if even one person relates to it, then I've done my job. You can write songs for yourself, to be your diary, but if nobody can relate to them, then you're really just better off singing in your living room."

On April 6, Koziel embarked on a Midwest tour alongside Orien Walsh, Amy Schmidt and Kiernan McMullan. Now Playing is available through Amazon.com, iTunes and most other major music retailers. - Revue

Stacey Koziel drops new record with handful of local shows... - West Michigan NOISE! Magazine

"thought-provoking music" - KalamazooNOISE

"Don't even get me started on Stacey Koziel. You may think she's just another singer-songwriter, but this girl offers something different that is not to be missed. I can't compare her to any artist out there, but she is good enough to be in a category of her own!" - Mindset - ND

Stacey Koziel starts her EP Naive with the song Happiness, a classic waltz feel and lovely vocals layered over subtle instrumentation get this album started off in the right direction.

Topics of lost love and regrets are established and continue into the rest of the album, showing a learned glimpse of the person behind the soothing, happy melody lines. As the album progresses, we hear Stacey’s takes on a range of familiar musical styles – blue grass beats, walking bass lines, and melodic ideas are exactly placed to let the listener sit back and enjoy the accessible rhythms strummed from her guitar, and the vulnerable lyrics sung into the atmosphere. - Media Mouthful