Anna Omak

It could be said that Mary J Blige and Westlife occupy fairly different positions on the music spectrum, but surprisingly they do have one thing in common; both have employed the vocal talents of singer-songwriter Anna Omak. Since she went professional at age 17, Anna has worked as a session artist for several high-profile performers, while all the time carving out her own musical identity at gigs all over London. It is testament to a talent that she has spent the larger part of her life developing, and in to which she now channels her heart and soul. The origins of Anna’s burgeoning life of song are firmly rooted in a childhood spent belting out gospel hymns fused with Hi-life rhythms and African folk songs at church in London. Although not from a particularly musical family the nature of church life meant she was immersed in music from the age of six. It was the perfect environment to explore what would ultimately become her passion. Anna was also opened up to different styles and as she grew older, her musical sensibilities expanded as she discovered Jazz, Blues, Folk, and soul all sounds that influence her evolving but unique sound now. A year spent at the Berklee College of Music in Boston solidified her resolve to become a professional musician. Her time there had a significant influence on her development as an artist, as well as offering vital insight into the cut-throat music business “It was kind of like a microcosm of the industry” says Anna. While business acumen is important, it is the reaction of an audience at her live gigs that inspires Anna most. Music, she feels, “is a powerful force that can change the atmosphere of a room” The honesty she infuses her songs with means inevitably life’s ups and downs are a regular source of material, but Anna insists she will always ends on a hopeful note. Hope will no doubt be a theme on her first EP, which she is currently recording. And she’s already had some surreal experiences; the kind one assumes goes hand in hand with the world of show business. One stop on the tour through Europe with Mary J Blige was a concert at the Coliseum in Rome. It was here, back stage after Blige’s set, that she was propositioned by none other than… Sting! Anna reluctantly reveals “He said ‘if I wasn’t married, I’d marry you’” Now that’s surely an endorsement if ever there was one!